Joyce Norwood

Dancing with the Waves

Born in the mountains of North Carolina Joyce Norwood grew up in a large family. One of ten girls, Joyce grew up surrounded by light and movement, and creativity. She began studying painting at the Art Students League in New York under the tutelage of Robert Brackman and William Draper. It was during this time that Joyce began to hone her eye for light and movement developing her curiosity for the ways color reflects light and focusing on how to capture these phenomena. Her instructors in New York encouraged her to continue her studies, which she did at the Cape Cod School of Art in Provincetown Massachusetts.

Always inspired by the Impressionist movement Joyce began experimenting with texture and the three-dimensionality that painting could offer, embracing the use of a palette knife to create texture and build surface. Joyce's preferred subjects are figures, often young women and girls which she paints with an eye for grace and movement. The coast is a source of endless inspiration, and her pieces often feature figures near the sea - the juxtaposition of the human figure and the light reflected in the water is something that is of endless fascination to her. She is known for her portraiture which is executed in her distinctive style; part impressionist, part realist, always with a focus on light and the gesture of her subject.

Joyce's work is guided by her love for the world and her deep-seated faith which helps her see the beauty of all creation. Her work is driven by the guiding prinicple of faith as well as an innate curiosity and interest in the aesthetic quality of the natural world. She writes that "...the human eye naturally responds to truth" and that it is this truth, this innate sense of someone or something, that she seeks to capture. She uses harmonious color and the interest of texture to draw the eye and to allow the viewer to slip into the world of the painting.

Joyce has received numerous accolades for her exceptional work and is widely recognized as a nationally acclaimed portraitist. Her art has been prominently exhibited at prestigious venues such as the Baker Museum and the Cape Museum of Art. Nestled in the serene surroundings of Naples, Florida, Joyce draws endless inspiration from the captivating beaches and tranquil sunsets that grace Florida's east coast.