I have been experimenting, playing, working with art since childhood. I graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1959 with a B.A. in Fine Arts. Although Abstract Expressionism was the rage, the head of the Art Department at the University, Lester Longman, taught a class in aesthetics, and made it clear he did not value abstract work too highly. Longman felt total abstraction did not direct the viewer specifically enough, did not use the artist’s developed skills fully, and thus had less value than art that referred to visual material outside itself. I was impressed by his reasoning.
As a result, when I came to San Francisco in the sixties, I continued to work realistically with the intent to make the skill natural to me. Once I was comfortable with realism, I felt I could begin to distort what I saw, bringing my work into a more expressive form. In those days I did a lot of drawing and painting from a model. In the seventies, I moved to drawings of people in coffee houses capturing the colorful clothes of the hippies as well as the coffee house atmosphere.
Moving to Berkeley in 1980, I took a course in Women’s Art History. The class helped my work expand from painting only what I saw towards constructing what I felt and imagined. Diane Rusnak, teacher of the Art History class, encouraged us to use our unique experiences as women for inspiration in our art. My assemblages on women and beauty were born at this time.
Yet, in much of my work, I continue to create with a strong tie to the representational. Just before I moved to Berkeley, I spent a few months as an artist in residence at Wilbur Hot Springs. There I assigned myself to produce one watercolor landscape an afternoon. I discovered I loved painting landscapes in watercolor. Although I may find inspiration elsewhere, I return to painting outside with watercolors. Often I combine watercolor with gouache in these paintings. Landscape painting is quiet, meditative and a great way to observe. Not only do I see colors, planes, values, composition (the basics of any painting), I see how the plants grow, cast shadows, the shapes of their leaves, how one leaf placed correctly can suggest many others. I see a dance of life and death in plants, some vibrant with color, others grey and brittle. As I paint, I become part of my landscape, and totally absorbed.
Other series I have done include littered landscapes from 1983 - 2003, life sized portraits of elders from 1994 - 2003, digitally woven nests from 2008 to the present, and townscapes 2002 to present.
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I have been experimenting, playing, working with art since childhood. I graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1959 with a B.A. in Fine Arts. Although Abstract Expressionism was the rage, the head of the Art Department at the University, Lester Longman, taught a class in aesthetics, and made it clear he did not value abstract work too highly. Longman felt total abstraction did not direct the viewer specifically enough, did not use the artist’s developed skills fully, and thus had less value than art that referred to visual material outside itself. I was impressed by his reasoning.
As a result, when I came to San Francisco in the sixties, I continued to work realistically with the intent to make the skill natural to me. Once I was comfortable with realism, I felt I could begin to distort what I saw, bringing my work into a more expressive form. In those days I did a lot of drawing and painting from a model. In the seventies, I moved to drawings of people in coffee houses capturing the colorful clothes of the hippies as well as the coffee house atmosphere.
Moving to Berkeley in 1980, I took a course in Women’s Art History. The class helped my work expand from painting only what I saw towards constructing what I felt and imagined. Diane Rusnak, teacher of the Art History class, encouraged us to use our unique experiences as women for inspiration in our art. My assemblages on women and beauty were born at this time.
Yet, in much of my work, I continue to create with a strong tie to the representational. Just before I moved to Berkeley, I spent a few months as an artist in residence at Wilbur Hot Springs. There I assigned myself to produce one watercolor landscape an afternoon. I discovered I loved painting landscapes in watercolor. Although I may find inspiration elsewhere, I return to painting outside with watercolors. Often I combine watercolor with gouache in these paintings. Landscape painting is quiet, meditative and a great way to observe. Not only do I see colors, planes, values, composition (the basics of any painting), I see how the plants grow, cast shadows, the shapes of their leaves, how one leaf placed correctly can suggest many others. I see a dance of life and death in plants, some vibrant with color, others grey and brittle. As I paint, I become part of my landscape, and totally absorbed.
Other series I have done include littered landscapes from 1983 - 2003, life sized portraits of elders from 1994 - 2003, digitally woven nests from 2008 to the present, and townscapes 2002 to present.
I have been experimenting, playing, working with art since childhood. I graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1959 with a B.A. in Fine Arts. Although Abstract Expressionism was the rage, the head of the Art Department at the University, Lester Longman, taught a class in aesthetics, and made it clear he did not value abstract work too highly. Longman felt total abstraction did not direct the viewer specifically enough, did not use the artist’s developed skills fully, and thus had less value than art that referred to visual material outside itself. I was impressed by his reasoning.
As a result, when I came to San Francisco in the sixties, I continued to work realistically with the intent to make the skill natural to me. Once I was comfortable with realism, I felt I could begin to distort what I saw, bringing my work into a more expressive form. In those days I did a lot of drawing and painting from a model. In the seventies, I moved to drawings of people in coffee houses capturing the colorful clothes of the hippies as well as the coffee house atmosphere.
Moving to Berkeley in 1980, I took a course in Women’s Art History. The class helped my work expand from painting only what I saw towards constructing what I felt and imagined. Diane Rusnak, teacher of the Art History class, encouraged us to use our unique experiences as women for inspiration in our art. My assemblages on women and beauty were born at this time.
Yet, in much of my work, I continue to create with a strong tie to the representational. Just before I moved to Berkeley, I spent a few months as an artist in residence at Wilbur Hot Springs. There I assigned myself to produce one watercolor landscape an afternoon. I discovered I loved painting landscapes in watercolor. Although I may find inspiration elsewhere, I return to painting outside with watercolors. Often I combine watercolor with gouache in these paintings. Landscape painting is quiet, meditative and a great way to observe. Not only do I see colors, planes, values, composition (the basics of any painting), I see how the plants grow, cast shadows, the shapes of their leaves, how one leaf placed correctly can suggest many others. I see a dance of life and death in plants, some vibrant with color, others grey and brittle. As I paint, I become part of my landscape, and totally absorbed.
Other series I have done include littered landscapes from 1983 - 2003, life sized portraits of elders from 1994 - 2003, digitally woven nests from 2008 to the present, and townscapes 2002 to present.
I have been experimenting, playing, working with art since childhood. I graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1959 with a B.A. in Fine Arts. Although Abstract Expressionism was the rage, the head of the Art Department at the University, Lester Longman, taught a class in aesthetics, and made it clear he did not value abstract work too highly. Longman felt total abstraction did not direct the viewer specifically enough, did not use the artist’s developed skills fully, and thus had less value than art that referred to visual material outside itself. I was impressed by his reasoning.
As a result, when I came to San Francisco in the sixties, I continued to work realistically with the intent to make the skill natural to me. Once I was comfortable with realism, I felt I could begin to distort what I saw, bringing my work into a more expressive form. In those days I did a lot of drawing and painting from a model. In the seventies, I moved to drawings of people in coffee houses capturing the colorful clothes of the hippies as well as the coffee house atmosphere.
Moving to Berkeley in 1980, I took a course in Women’s Art History. The class helped my work expand from painting only what I saw towards constructing what I felt and imagined. Diane Rusnak, teacher of the Art History class, encouraged us to use our unique experiences as women for inspiration in our art. My assemblages on women and beauty were born at this time.
Yet, in much of my work, I continue to create with a strong tie to the representational. Just before I moved to Berkeley, I spent a few months as an artist in residence at Wilbur Hot Springs. There I assigned myself to produce one watercolor landscape an afternoon. I discovered I loved painting landscapes in watercolor. Although I may find inspiration elsewhere, I return to painting outside with watercolors. Often I combine watercolor with gouache in these paintings. Landscape painting is quiet, meditative and a great way to observe. Not only do I see colors, planes, values, composition (the basics of any painting), I see how the plants grow, cast shadows, the shapes of their leaves, how one leaf placed correctly can suggest many others. I see a dance of life and death in plants, some vibrant with color, others grey and brittle. As I paint, I become part of my landscape, and totally absorbed.
Other series I have done include littered landscapes from 1983 - 2003, life sized portraits of elders from 1994 - 2003, digitally woven nests from 2008 to the present, and townscapes 2002 to present.
BIO
I have been experimenting, playing, working with art since childhood. I graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1959 with a B.A. in Fine Arts. Although Abstract Expressionism was the rage, the head of the Art Department at the University, Lester Longman, taught a class in aesthetics, and made it clear he did not value abstract work too highly. Longman felt total abstraction did not direct the viewer specifically enough, did not use the artist’s developed skills fully, and thus had less value than art that referred to visual material outside itself. I was impressed by his reasoning.
As a result, when I came to San Francisco in the sixties, I continued to work realistically with the intent to make the skill natural to me. Once I was comfortable with realism, I felt I could begin to distort what I saw, bringing my work into a more expressive form. In those days I did a lot of drawing and painting from a model. In the seventies, I drew people in coffee houses capturing the colorful clothes of the hippies as well as the coffee house atmosphere.
Moving to Berkeley in 1980, I took a course in Women’s Art History. The class helped my work expand from painting only what I saw towards constructing what I felt and imagined. Diane Rusnak, teacher of the Art History class, encouraged us to use our unique experiences as women for inspiration in our art. My assemblages on women and beauty were born at this time.
Yet, in much of my work, I continue to create with a strong tie to the representational. Just before I moved to Berkeley, I spent a few months as an artist in residence at Wilbur Hot Springs. There I assigned myself to produce one watercolor landscape an afternoon. I discovered I loved painting landscapes combining watercolor with gouache. Although I may find inspiration elsewhere, I return to painting outside with watercolors. Landscape painting is quiet, meditative and a great way to observe. I see how the plants grow, cast shadows, the shapes of their leaves, how one leaf placed correctly can suggest many others. I see a dance of life and death in plants, some vibrant with color, others grey and brittle. As I paint, I become part of my landscape, and totally absorbed.
Other series I have done include littered landscapes from 1983 - 2003, life sized portraits of elders from 1994 - 2003, digitally woven nests from 2008 to the present, and townscapes 2002 to present.
BIO
I have been experimenting, playing, working with art since childhood. I graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1959 with a B.A. in Fine Arts. Although Abstract Expressionism was the rage, the head of the Art Department at the University, Lester Longman, taught a class in aesthetics, and made it clear he did not value abstract work too highly. Longman felt total abstraction did not direct the viewer specifically enough, did not use the artist’s developed skills fully, and thus had less value than art that referred to visual material outside itself. I was impressed by his reasoning.
As a result, when I came to San Francisco in the sixties, I continued to work realistically with the intent to make the skill natural to me. Once I was comfortable with realism, I felt I could begin to distort what I saw, bringing my work into a more expressive form. In those days I did a lot of drawing and painting from a model. In the seventies, I drew people in coffee houses capturing the colorful clothes of the hippies as well as the coffee house atmosphere.
Moving to Berkeley in 1980, I took a course in Women’s Art History. The class helped my work expand from painting only what I saw towards constructing what I felt and imagined. Diane Rusnak, teacher of the Art History class, encouraged us to use our unique experiences as women for inspiration in our art. My assemblages on women and beauty were born at this time.
Yet, in much of my work, I continue to create with a strong tie to the representational. Just before I moved to Berkeley, I spent a few months as an artist in residence at Wilbur Hot Springs. There I assigned myself to produce one watercolor landscape an afternoon. I discovered I loved painting landscapes combining watercolor with gouache. Although I may find inspiration elsewhere, I return to painting outside with watercolors. Landscape painting is quiet, meditative and a great way to observe. I see how the plants grow, cast shadows, the shapes of their leaves, how one leaf placed correctly can suggest many others. I see a dance of life and death in plants, some vibrant with color, others grey and brittle. As I paint, I become part of my landscape, and totally absorbed.
Other series I have done include littered landscapes from 1983 - 2003, life sized portraits of elders from 1994 - 2003, digitally woven nests from 2008 to the present, and townscapes 2002 to present.
BIO
I have been experimenting, playing, working with art since childhood. I graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1959 with a B.A. in Fine Arts. Although Abstract Expressionism was the rage, the head of the Art Department at the University, Lester Longman, taught a class in aesthetics, and made it clear he did not value abstract work too highly. Longman felt total abstraction did not direct the viewer specifically enough, did not use the artist’s developed skills fully, and thus had less value than art that referred to visual material outside itself. I was impressed by his reasoning.
As a result, when I came to San Francisco in the sixties, I continued to work realistically with the intent to make the skill natural to me. Once I was comfortable with realism, I felt I could begin to distort what I saw, bringing my work into a more expressive form. In those days I did a lot of drawing and painting from a model. In the seventies, I drew people in coffee houses capturing the colorful clothes of the hippies as well as the coffee house atmosphere.
Moving to Berkeley in 1980, I took a course in Women’s Art History. The class helped my work expand from painting only what I saw towards constructing what I felt and imagined. Diane Rusnak, teacher of the Art History class, encouraged us to use our unique experiences as women for inspiration in our art. My assemblages on women and beauty were born at this time.
Yet, in much of my work, I continue to create with a strong tie to the representational. Just before I moved to Berkeley, I spent a few months as an artist in residence at Wilbur Hot Springs. There I assigned myself to produce one watercolor landscape an afternoon. I discovered I loved painting landscapes combining watercolor with gouache. Although I may find inspiration elsewhere, I return to painting outside with watercolors. Landscape painting is quiet, meditative and a great way to observe. I see how the plants grow, cast shadows, the shapes of their leaves, how one leaf placed correctly can suggest many others. I see a dance of life and death in plants, some vibrant with color, others grey and brittle. As I paint, I become part of my landscape, and totally absorbed.
Other series I have done include littered landscapes from 1983 - 2003, life sized portraits of elders from 1994 - 2003, digitally woven nests from 2008 to the present, and townscapes 2002 to present.
Art by Joanna Katz
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