Painting 'Liberty's National Treasures'
‘I love the colours, textures, materials and forms in man-made structures and environments and the challenge of finding ways of representing them with paint. Often when I choose to paint a scene, I don’t yet know exactly what is drawing me to it, but I feel I learn more about myself and the world around me by studying it closely and trying to bring my own personal emotional response to it. I often choose to paint complex images, not only to give the viewer more to discover over time, but to evoke the fascination I feel when I stop to look closely at the designs, patterns and interplay of visual elements, whether created intentionally or occurring randomly, in the often chaotic environments we are so accustom to that we hardly notice them. Painting is my way of appreciating the beauty in the environments we have created for ourselves, paying homage to those who have designed and built them, and making my own small contribution’.
Joel was interested in painting and drawing from a young age, largely due to the influence of his father, who is a talented artist and promoted a healthy respect for art by taking him to museums whenever possible. He spent many of his earlier years copying drawings from Mad magazine as practice, and in high school his interest in art was nurtured by many influential teachers. He obtained his Bachelor’s of Fine Art (Painting Drawing and Illustration) from the University of Utah in 2002, where he won 1st place for the painting Belt Route in the graduate exhibition. By this time his fascination with representing contemporary cityscape had been sparked, and he continues to work towards a deeper engagement with these themes.
Since graduating, he has held various professional roles as an artist, including illustrator and designer for a tourism company covering the mid-western United States, and layout artist and product stylist for a London-based lifestyle magazine. He has done numerous commissioned oil paintings for both private and corporate clients. Other projects have included logo design and branding, CD and T-shirt illustration/design, children’s book illustration and tattoo design.
Joel is also deeply involved in art education, working as an Assessment Designer of Art & Design, Drama and other creative subject qualifications for one of the UKs largest examination and awarding organisations, Pearson UK.
Joel lives in London and works from his home studio.
His other main interests are listening to, writing and recording music, film and photography.
Exhibitions
Open house at Jane Newbury Gallery
- April 1994 – Springville Art Show (group exhibition) Springville, UT USA
- Summer 2001 – Art & Car Gallery (group exhibition) Salt Lake City, UT USA
- May 2002 – University of Utah Graduate Art Show (group exhibiton) Salt Lake City, UT USA
- October 2004 – Slug Studios – ‘Dark Wizard: Vile Blue Shades Album Artwork’ (solo exhibition) Salt Lake City, UT USA
- October/November 2005 – Sargeant Salon – ‘Utah Cityscape’ (solo exhibition) Salt Lake City, UT USA
- April/May 2011 – Arthub Gallery (group Exhibition) London, UK
- September 2011 – Arthub Gallery ‘Deptford X – Wall to Wall’ (group exhibition) London, UK
- May – June 2013 – Jane Newbery Gallery ‘Urban Landscape 2013’ (solo exhibition) London, UK
- June 2013 – Arthub Gallery ‘Creekside Ahoy’ (group exhibition) London, UK
- July 2013 – Royal Festival Hall ‘8 Minutes From Here’ (group exhibition) London, UK
Awards
'Belt Route'
- 1st Place – April 1994 – Springville Art Show
- 1st Place in Painting for ‘Belt Route’ – May 2002 – University of Utah Graduate Art Show
- 2nd Place – 2005 PCSDA Postcard and Souvenir Design Awards
