Joanne was born and raised In Calgary, Alberta. Not long after retiring from her career as a Petroleum Engineer, she signed up for a drawing class with a friend, and that launched an ongoing exploration of all things art.
Since 2013, Joanne has taken many art workshops and classes, in a myriad of mediums and subject matter. Drawing, oil pastels and watercolours were her first explorations.
In 2016, Joanne and her husband, along with their three orange tabby cats, moved to Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island. They were barely settled in when Joanne began to immerse herself in an amazing art scene that offers incredible creative opportunities for artists and creators of every skill level.
In 2018, another artist introduced Joanne to “dotting” mandalas on rocks with acrylic paint and a fire to create art with dots was lit within. Eventually, rocks were too small, and mandalas too rigid. Enter dotting landscapes, trees and local wildlife on canvas. A Pointillist was born!
In Joanne's words, “I live in a place rich with an abundance of natural beauty: light, trees, mountains, the ocean, and birds inspire my work. My acrylic paintings are a modified form of pointillism. I generally don’t overlap my dots (like the original pointillists did); there is a tiny space around each dot that allows the underpainting to show through. The contrast of the coloured dots and the underpainting make my paintings shimmer. I start with the largest dots first, and slowly fill up the canvas with smaller and smaller dots until I’m satisfied there is no room for more. My work takes patience, but I find that once I have a plan of my work in mind, it is very relaxing to just let the dots flow.
I was smitten with the first dot artwork I’d seen that was done by a fellow artist; I knew I had to try it myself. I hope people viewing my work feel something similar. I want to capture their imagination; I want them to wonder: how did she do that?"
