Joan Stevenson

I’m a contemporary inspirational artist working with paint and repurposed papers to uplift and inspire my viewers. I started painting when I lost my job at the beginning of the pandemic and wanted a way to encourage myself and others with something hopeful and inspiring. Each piece starts with an initial layer of words of encouragement, hope and blessings, which are either hand written or torn from old books and fixed on the canvas or board. These words may or may not be visible in the finished work, but I hope their spirit will live on to bring hope and inspire others. I then paint beautiful subjects and layers of color in an unabashedly feminine style. I chose contemplative subjects with modern botanicals, or symbols of peace such as waterfalls, forests, birds etc, that evoke the peace and calm that comes from being connected to nature and surrounded by beauty.