CFCC Alumna Jessie Robertson Combines Art and Purpose
From Wilmington Early College High School to CFCC to UNCW, alumna Jessie Robertson has built a career that combines art and purpose.
Jessie graduated from Cape Fear Community College in 2019 with not one, but three associate degrees: Art, Science, and Fine Arts in Visual Arts.
Building a Foundation at CFCC
At CFCC, Jessie explored a range of media, from painting and printmaking to sculpture. “I had the honor of taking a mix of different classes, including sculpture with Rick Conn and printmaking with Ben Billingsley. Both introduced me to so many different materials and techniques.”
After CFCC, Jessie transferred to UNCW, earning degrees in Studio Art and Digital Arts and a minor in Computer Science. “The combination of traditional art and digital design gave me a well-rounded background,” she said.
A Lifelong Love of Frogs
Jessie’s artwork, often inspired by her lifelong love of frogs, reflects her belief that art can be a powerful tool for awareness and change.
“When I was born, my grandfather gave me a stuffed frog animal named Froggy,” she laughed. “As I fell in love with him, I just fell in love with frogs in general.”
Born in Memphis, Jessie grew up visiting the Herpetarium at the Memphis Zoo, where she was captivated by the variety of frog species, especially the Panamanian golden frog. “Their habitat in Panama was perfectly pristine,” she explained. “But by 2009, they were fully extinct in the wild because of an invisible aquatic fungus called chytrid fungus, considered to be the world’s most lethal wildlife pathogen due to its devastating impacts on hundreds of amphibian species.”
Those early experiences shaped her perspective as an artist and an environmental advocate. “It was shocking when I was younger to suddenly learn all these bad things are happening,” she said. “But to me, it was a call for action. If I already enjoyed making artwork of these frogs, this is a tool I can use to spread awareness and help.”
Merging Art and Career at Art in Bloom
That sense of purpose now drives her work at Art in Bloom Gallery , where Jessie is a gallery specialist and graphic designer. “It’s been such an honor to be there among 30 other local artists and share my work alongside them,” she said.
Jessie’s artwork was recently featured in the 2025 CFCC Alumni Art Exhibition at the Wilma Daniels Gallery, which is now coming to a close. Her work can still be seen and purchased at Art in Bloom Gallery, where she continues to share her art with the community.
“It was such a privilege to be part of the 2025 CFCC Alumni Art Exhibition,” she said. “Cape Fear gave me such a strong foundation, and I still carry so much of what I learned there into everything I do today.”
