Joanna is a painter whose large-scale figurative works examine her relationship to herself, her family, and the world around her. Her practice explores themes of protection, motherhood, childhood, femininity and untamed instinct.

Watching her daughters grow has led Joanna to reflect on her childhood through the lens of motherhood. Her upbringing was unmediated by technology or constant oversight, and by today’s standards, she would likely have been considered unruly, even rogue.

Drawing and making small work sparks ideas for her larger paintings which evolve intuitively on the canvas through layers of fluid paint. The large scale is important to Joanna, allowing her to inhabit the work during its making. Female figures recur in her paintings, often loosely drawn from her own body or those of her children.

Referencing dreams, memories, and present experience, Joanna gives form to her emotional and internal landscape.