Joanna Turlej was born in Warsaw Poland and raised in a southern part of the country. Her father was an art professor at the local art school. He also was an early influence on Joanna, teaching her the first art lessons. Growing up in this environment of beautiful nature and art culture gave Joanna a great start for her artistic career.
Joanna fled the communist regime of Poland in search of better life at the age of 19 with only a suitcase of summer clothes. She travelled to London, England, from where she immigrated to Canada, a year later.
She graduated from OCAD University in Toronto, ON with an honours degree and George A. Reid Award of Excellence. Since her graduation, she has studied under many notable artists, continuously expanding her artistic knowledge and expertise. These art educators include: Skip Lawrence, Christopher Schink, Alvaro Castagnet, Linda Kemp, John Leonard, Peter Kolisnyk, and Brian Atyeo.
During her 25 year career as an artist, she has explored different media, among them watercolours, acrylics, and mixed media. In 2014, her explorations led her to embrace a paper collage technique, as an expression of her art. This very specialized and unique technique, created by her, rendered her a lot of success. In just a short few months after producing a large body of work, she was elected as a member of a prestigious OSA (Ontario Society of Artists).
In July 2015, Joanna was invited to participate in Art Monaco 2015 Art Fair. In October 2015, Joanna had her two collages accepted into the Nuit Blanche 2015 exhibition at Red Head Gallery in Toronto, ON. In Feb. 2016, Joanna participated in the Artist Project 2016, in Toronto, ON. In March 2016, Joanna participated in RAW Signature event in Maison Mercer in Toronto.
In June 2016, Joanna exhibited in OAS (Oakville Art Society) Juried Exhibition in Centenial Gallery in Oakville. Joanna received Juror’s Choice Award for her work “Blue Vase 2”. Most recently her work has been accepted to the OSA Open juried Exhibition “Suspension and Motion” in John B. Aird Gallery in Toronto. She received the Best in Show Award for her work “Dancing for You”.
In 2017 she is again exhibiting in Artist Project Art Fair in Toronto.
More information about Joanna Turlej and her work can be found on her website www.joannaturlej.com