BIO

Having spent her childhood in Maryland, Joan returned to the East Coast from Texas to pursue her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bard College in Annandale, New York. Upon graduation from Bard in 1996, Joan moved out to the Bay Area of California where she discovered her talent and passion for collage art.

Joan got her start in professional graphics working as an illustrator and colorist for the renowned urban planning firm, Peter Calthorpe Associates in Berkeley. There she began teaching herself Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator in the rendering of large planning maps and quickly saw the potential of integrating these programs in the creation of her collages. She took classes at UC Berkeley to help her master the programs and shifted from hand cut collage to digital where the possibilities were far more vast.

After four years in California, Joan was ready for a change of pace and scenery. She chose Sedona, Arizona as her new stomping grounds with awe-inspiring natural beauty and plenty of fellow artists. She worked for Hal Stone, aka “Jughead” of Old Time Radio fame, assisting him in illustrating his book about his career in OTR. She also did design work for Interior Designer, Dana Cavanaugh.

 

After a brief 6 months in Sedona, Joan was swept off her feet by an old flame from New York and moved to the big bad apple to be with him. Through her connection to Hal Stone, Joan took a position with Technicolor Creative Services, but feeling ill-suited for life in the big city, after two years Joan and her beau moved upstate to the country.

Joan has now completed a Certificate in Computer Art at Westchester Community College and the Westchester Arts Workshop and is thoroughly enjoying both her job as the Graphic Artist for The Ulster County Press, The Blue Stone Press, and The Weekender Country Home Journal as well as freelance design for local businesses.

Joan’s collage and graphic design services are available to anyone in the world at very affordable rates. She is always open to inquiries, comments, and especially compliments. She can be reached via email at jr@collagequeen.com