artist statement

Many paintings above rely on an extended allegory of people coming together around a table. Helpful figures of speech: get everyone together around the table, turn the table, wait on tables, get a seat at the table, set the table, put something on the table (or take it off), table it for now, no room at the table, under the table. 
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I often start a painting with a  big circle for the table and draw some chairs ─ empty. Then I get to seat a person. They might be young/old, shy/extrovert, sly/unknowing, a participant or a watcher or a witness, involved or oblivious or dreaming. I don't want realism in the faces but I do want expression that is readable. This is tricky and I often back off the drawing to err on the side of cartoon, rather than slide into painting a specific person's face. 

I do all this to tell the complications of family through time, and my wishes for the future. Emotional dialogues take place that are interactions not just within a family but with the history of the family, which includes society at large and our natural world. 

Besides tables, I've worked with orchards, circuses, and bodies of water.

My intent for my work comes from how I love to sit in front of a piece in the mornings with a cup of hot tea in my hands, and let my mind go. I want art that gives me a place to go.


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​RESUME

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Joyce Garner Studio
217 S. Clay St.
Louisville, KY 40202
by appointment only
(502) 303-7259
garnernarrative@gmail.com