Joy Gonzalez • California • waow
| Landscape | Seascape | Still Life | Oil | Pastel | Floral | Plein Air |
"If I can give the viewer a magical view of a special place and time of day, my art has fulfilled its purpose."
Women Artists of the West, Signature
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Joy Gonzalez
Joy Gonzalez has always been an artist at heart, though she worked for many years as a computer programmer. Her parents encouraged her creative endeavors as she explored sewing, crafts, painting and drawing. She entered UCLA as a fine arts major, but interrupted her studies to marry and have children. She returned to college and earned a BA in fine arts and then a BS in computer science.
Joy continued painting as a hobby while working as a programmer, dreaming of the day when she could pursue art full time. During the last few years the dream has become reality. She has taken painting workshops and classes from Frank Serrano, Libby Tolley, Jeff Horn and most recently, Jove Wang. She paints in pastels as well as oils and watercolors, depending on the weather and her mood. She loves to paint small landscape studies on location and then returns to the studio to enlarge the studies.
“I have a beautiful studio space on the third floor of the Los Angeles Harbor Arts Studios and Gallery, 401 S. Mesa St., San Pedro CA 90731.
We are open on First Thursdays throughout the year from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm and by appointment.”
In her artwork, Joy tries to convey her deep appreciation of the natural world. She has enjoyed camping and hiking in the mountains and near the ocean since she was a child, and she hopes her paintings convey the excitement she feels outdoors.
“I have always loved the creative process, currently including painting in oils, pastels and watercolor. In my artwork, I try to convey my deep appreciation of the natural world. I hope my paintings share the excitement I feel outdoors and the exuberance of creative activity.
On my best painting days, I lose track of time and get into the flow of what I am doing, then look up and discover that I have been painting all day. My favorite subjects are landscapes, often small paintings painted plein air or larger paintings painted from my plein air studies. I love the richness and depth of oil on canvas and I also love the fluidity and delicacy of watercolor on paper. I have recently added pastels to my repertoire and I'm becoming comfortable with them.”
Women Artists of the West
