Joan Sveen

Joan paints what she loves – the fauna and flora of Canada. For inspiration and material, she frequently takes extended painting trips to places such as the back country of Sheep River and Kananaskis, the Crowsnest and Nova Scotia, where she continued to expand her ideas and skills through experimentation and practice. What Joan loves is that art has enabled her to explore a diverse environment and in turn, the environment has enabled her to explore creativity in her work.

Much of Joan’s artwork begins in the outdoors. Working regularly en plein aire allows Joan to incorporate the rich and vibrant colours of the foothills and mountains into her paintings. Hiking, horseback riding and sometimes helicoptering into wilderness areas enables her to gather more rugged subjects for her pieces. The challenge of painting in the coolness of the icefields, in the wind on top of a mountain or in the heat of the prairies, contributes to liveliness of her work. Acrylic or pen and watercolour sketches done in the field are completed in the studio with acrylics.

Joan’s fascination with colour has been influenced by the fauvists such as Kandinsky and Matisse. She is also inspired by Toulousee-Lautrec and the ease with which he could capture the power of the horse with such simple strokes. Joan devotes much time to her art. With each piece of work, new discoveries are made, and the joy of creation continues.