Joy Black
Boundless

April 28 - May 20, 2023

Mixed-Media Painting

Artist Statement

These abstract intuitive works were created during a recent three-year period of upheaval and loss. Painting became my therapy as I was pulled from one tragic loss to the next with no time to process what was happening. 

The paintings tell stories. They reflect the energies of our natural world and the essence of our own internal energies. Some of the stories are sad, but surprisingly, most of the paintings express a sense of joy and peace.

Sometimes I am conscious of the intended outcome for a piece as I am painting. More often, I am not, and it is only when I look at near-finished work that I realize an energy has entered from beyond the room where I am painting. I do not try to control that energy. I allow it to flow and give it time to intuitively become what it is meant to be on the canvas. One example is when a miscarried soul made himself known to me. He was persistent in wanting to be recognized. I immediately knew who he was and painted his essence without ever having seen him. I was in awe of the experience.

I work in mixed media, primarily with acrylic paint, often adding hand-dyed silks, pastels, graphite, handmade papers, and other textural media. I combine these media to capture the varying colors, textures, and intensities of the energies I am painting. The patterning in many of my paintings often reflects the joyful energetic movements of my more than 15 years’ practice of Qi Gong (Chi Kung).

I paint unseen energies because I sense them deeply. I am drawn to them, and it often feels important to paint them. To me, they are as much a part of our world as trees, animals, and people. 

— Joy Black

Biography

Joy Black is an abstract artist based in Richmond, Virginia. She intuitively expresses the energies of our natural world, and the essence of our own internal energies, on stretched canvas with acrylic and mixed media. Joy earned a BFA from Virginia Commonwealth University, specializing in Communication Arts & Design, and enjoyed a 40-year career as graphic designer, art director, and creative manager in design studios and ad agencies, and three entrepreneurial creative ventures. 

Black is a senior instructor of the healing art of Qi Gong (Chi Kung). She has studied the practice for more than 15 years and traveled to Thailand and China for further training. Qi Gong has deepened her sensitivity to the various energies she paints, and her artworks frequently radiate the peace and balance of those connections. 

Six years ago, Black immersed herself in painting. She has been mentored by painter and teacher, Lauren Mantecon, of Mantecon Studios, in Santa Fe, NM, since 2019, and has studied locally with Amie Oliver and Joanna Tyka. She has shown and sold her work online and in local galleries. In 2022, her painting, “Whirlwind” was accepted in Glave Kocen Consulting’s “Hung Juried 2.0” show, and her painting, “Nature’s Song” was juried into Arts on Main’s Annual Juried Exhibition. In 2021 a body of her work was juried into membership at Artspace Gallery. That same year, her painting, “Release” was accepted in Crossroads Art Center’s “September All-Media Show.” Additionally, Black has participated in member exhibitions at Artspace and Crossroads Art Center and displayed her works at MuseMe Décor.

Instagram: @joyblackart