Today we’d like to introduce you to Joana Fischer.
Joana, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I am a German-born artist and make my home in Miami Beach, Florida. I studied fine arts at the University of Fine Arts in Muenster, Germany and continued my studies in Aix-en-Provence, France, on a study-abroad scholarship. Upon graduation, I moved to Florida, where I live with my husband and our three children. Today, I am a full-time artist, made a name for myself in the Florida art scene and also had multiple exhibitions in my native Germany. Last June, I took part in a wonderful two-person exhibition at the Kunsthalle Ravensburg, Germany. I’m the founder of THE LINE MIAMI artist collective which focuses on drawing.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
In 2011, I became a resident artist at the Bakehouse Art Complex in Miami. This was my first artist studio and a wonderful experience. It was my starting point to focus solely on my art. After a few years of work, connections were established and my art practice evolved more and more. Doors for exhibition opportunities opened and I steadily made good progress in my career.
Over time, I realized and discovered more and more my inner interests and the real focus of my work. It takes courage to stand up for my ideas and opinions, to stand behind them and to articulate those well through my work. To take a ‘no’ not for granted, to be strong, to keep fighting and to think big.
Last fall, I came up an idea of a collaborative drawing project which is called THE LINE DRAWING PROJECT and which is currently on view on Instagram. Each participating artist creates an answer to the previous artist’s drawing by repeating/taking over one element of the prior work. It is a project which sets its foundation on collaboration and connection. You can check out our project under https://www.instagram.
A site-specific installation with a morphing projection of the submitted works will be an end goal of the project. The exhibition will be a multi-media show. It shall represent the means of worldwide connections that are made through social media and simultaneously the virtual world of online media.
Through collaborations, new connections are established. Researching about other artists I admire is a wonderful learning experience. Being able to connect with them through this drawing project is very special. Last fall, I then founded THE LINE MIAMI – an artist collective. So far it has been a wonderful, inspirational learning experience. In the future, more collaborative projects shall follow.
Joana Fischer and THE LINE MIAMI – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I draw with ink and paint with diluted acrylic paint on architectural polyester film. My love of drawing becomes particularly apparent in my smaller formats. These include filigree pen drawings of impressions of nature against white spaces and brightly colored striations. In some cases, these drawings become figural upon closer inspection to reveal such scenes as climbing children.
My larger formats typically hint at urban architecture or natural landscapes. Some of them are free-hanging and illuminated from behind using LED light strips and other light sources, thereby enhancing the brightness of the colors. Ink layers of varying thicknesses, partially in neon colors, bring about an iridescent quality where images of real architecture are combined with a colorful interpretation of nature through the overlay of special polyester films.
My artistic inspiration is drawn both from my travels and my direct environment. For me, drawing and painting are moments of quiet and introspection. This allows me to analyze and interpret the Zeitgeist, focusing on contrasting themes such as urban life vs. nature, environmental protection vs. pollution, or organic vs. synthetic. Other prominent themes of mine include childhood, free play and the experience of nature—inspired by my own childhood memories and my observation of my three children playing and interacting. I feel that children’s simple, spontaneous play in a natural setting is increasingly being lost in contemporary America as more and more emphasis is put on school work and organized activities.
I am the founder of the artist collective THE LINE MIAMI. www.the-line.miami
THE LINE MIAMI is an artist collective aiming to connect artists for collaborative exhibitions, site-specific projects, and installations all over the globe. It shall also encourage creative exchange and skill development among the participants. The focus lies on contemporary, diverse and non-traditional drawing in combination with other media.
What sets me apart from others:
My interest in working in large formats, use of polyester foil as a medium and integration of light. This all very unconventional. Furthermore, to work in collaboration and connection with others.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Constantly learning and being open to new adventures. Being able to live in America has greatly expanded my horizon. I am very fortunate of doing something I absolutely love.
Being able to live a life without a 9-5 job situation, and to spend time in different places over the year (Miami, Colorado and Europe), to follow my own interests and reflect about the current Zeitgeist through my art. Achieving as an artist and being a mother of three. My children often inspire my artworks and they are somehow indispensable for my practice.
It is very rewarding to be in professional, well curated and well-organized exhibitions. One of these exhibitions has taken place last June at the Kunsthalle Ravensburg, Germany. The large warehouse exhibition space was awesome and my suspended, backlit works showed beautifully there.
There are these moments of showing my works and having people engage with them. To benefit of connections and new opportunities. I had public exhibitions in galleries and fairs in Miami, Florida, in Germany and had museum appearances at the Baker Museum, Naples, FL, the Coral Gables Museum, Miami, FL, the Boca Museum of Art, Boca Raton, FL, and the Art and Culture Center Hollywood, FL.
In June 2019, I will be showing at the Kunstverein Ahlen, Germany which I am very much looking forward to.
Furthermore, my new endeavor with the artist collective THE LINE MIAMI is exciting to me and I am anticipating future projects and new adventures collaborating with other artists.
During the Art Basel week in December THE LINE MIAMI will exhibit in collaboration with SHIM (http://www.shhhim.com), (a Brooklyn based gallery), at Aqua Art fair. Shown will be works of artists who took part in our THE LINE DRAWING PROJECT. I’m very excited about this opportunity.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.joana-fischer.com
- Phone: 786-404-1985
- Email: info@joana-fischer.com
- Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/ joanafischerartist/ - Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/JoanaFischerArt/
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