Joanne Collins

I am originally from Toronto, but left at a young age on an adventure that took me to remote areas in the northern Canadian wilderness where I raised my children and fell in love with the wildlife with whom we cohabitated. I don’t have a fear of wild animals, and this may explain my many close encounters. Rather, I have a profound respect for them which may explain why I have never been attacked! A central focus of my art work is to express and share the love and respect I have for our fur and feather friends.My journey eventually brought me back to Ontario where my family’s needs were met by a teaching career which I found very fulfilling. As I approached retirement, I saw an opportunity to turn my artistic skill into something more than a hobby, and when my days in the classroom were over, I found the time to explore more thoroughly my passion to paint.I have found that painting from my own reference photos is an element that adds significantly to the joy I get from being an artist. This does limit my subject matter, and there are occasions when I see someone else’s photograph that I can’t resist, and if I get permission, I paint it, but my camera travels with me everywhere, even in my kayak.
My favourite story related to gathering my own reference photos happened on a cold December day when I was walking my dog, Charlie. He suddenly stopped in his tracks and stared into the bush with an almost human look of amazement. While I have often berated him for scaring wildlife away, he redeemed himself this day by pointing out a beautiful barred owl sitting on a branch not far off the trail. Although the light was fading, I got the reference shot and started my painting “Just Before Dark” that very day. That painting was accepted into the NOAA 67th juried show touring northern Ontario 2023-2024.