Artist Statement

When I am at Cape Cod, I’m on the lookout for a new, fresh approach to seeing the environment, with the hope that any new paintings that result will be just as inspiring.

While walking and observing the plants and animals along the saltwater shores, the images that attract my attention become a springboard for the ideas in my paintings. In order to successfully express my fantasies, I personify what I see. Sometimes I imagine I’m represented by one of those characters in the painting.  Later, when I am working in my studio, I let myself go beyond the reality of what I’ve visually seen. The happenings in the paintings eventually seem to take on a life of their own. For instance, the caterpillars in the painting “On & Off Ramps”, are inching their way through a congested yet richly layered environment, suggesting to me that they are there with new opportunities but also with new dangers. Each painting is different, but the common thread is my execution of the work in my own style, while making sure the art is communicative and meaningful to myself and others.

Artist Bio

Besides exhibiting at Kingston Gallery since 2003, Joan has been a participant in a variety of invitational and juried shows, such as Home: Self, Spirit, Space at Clark University, Claiming the Spirit at Brandeis University, and More Unique Seats at The Art Complex Museum in Duxbury. She had a show in 2017 at the Cape Cod Cultural Center and also in 2018 at The Hopkinton Art Center. Joan has received many awards, including the exclusive finalist award in works on paper from the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Artist’s Grant Program. She has been reviewed in many publications, including Art New England, The Boston Globe and Artscope.

For many years prior to 1995 Joan worked as an illustrator, muralist and display artist in Charlotte, NC. She has lived and worked in the Boston area since 1995, concentrating exclusively on fine arts painting.  Joan graduated from Purdue University with a B.A. in art education and has supplemented her education in Charlotte NC, London and Boston, including courses at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Her studio is at River Street Artists, part of Waltham Mills Artists Association in Waltham, MA.

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