Joan Stanich . . .

by Rick McCluskey

Beginning July 1st through August 31st the Pollard Gallery will feature the artwork of Joan Stanich. She has worked diligently in preparation and has purposely kept the theme focused on what people know and love about Kenosha. All the lighthouses will be represented, so will the harbor and sailboats and of course, the bright red trolley that circles downtown. I have seen the labors of her love and marveled at the crisp lines and stark contrast between the colors. It will be a wonderful show and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. The wait will be worth it.

As we moved about the gallery chatting about her upcoming show, I noticed several framed pieces leaning against the wall off to the side. They looked so different from what I had already viewed and if not for the name etched in the corner, I might have overlooked them, thinking they belonged to another artist.

“These yours too?”

She nodded and smiled, then handed me a folded piece of paper before continuing with the tour. “I travel a lot. These happen to be from a trip to England. I call it the English Series.”

The longer I stared at the landscapes the more I felt I was actually there. Once again there were crisp lines and stark contrast of colors, but not to the degree of her upcoming Kenosha show. These were muted and possessed a conscious quality as though I were the watcher from the hill, a pedestrian taking a stroll through a park or a tourist visiting a secluded part of a castle.

I leaned in deeper still, past another framed landscape and discovered another side of Joan’s mastery that was truly amazing. Spread across a tabletop were several Christmas cards done in watercolors. I love watercolors. If I must have a favorite medium then it must be watercolors. I have been enchanted by such pastels for thirty plus years of visiting Door County and have yet to tire of them. Unfortunately I don’t possess the gift, or the patience to create such beauty. All I can do is write and sometimes I have to wonder about that!

“Your’s also?” I asked.

Once again she nodded. “I’ve been doing one every year since 1994. It’s a family tradition. Most are just Christmas ideas. A few are for lost relatives.”

Her ensuing tragic story of why was poignant, and after hearing it, I felt as though I had invaded her personal space. Still, these cards too were vastly different from her purposed show and I found her ever expanding versatility fascinating. One was a bright red Cardinal in winter and another was a Christmas gathering so real I thought I was looking at a photograph. Yet the one that stopped me cold was not of Christmas or any other holiday, it was a little girl and two little boys (circa early 1940s) playing in front of a house. It was truly heartfelt and had captured that rare Normal Rockwell animation, only in Joan’s hand.

As I sat it back down, I said, “Remarkable, Joan. Absolutely remarkable.”

Her smile broadened as I opened the folded piece of paper she had given me earlier. On it was a list of memorable quotes of Eric Liddell’s from Chariots of Fire, one of which was marked with yellow highlights; ‘I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.’

“My inspiration comes from my faith,” she said, having guessed my next question. “God motivates me.”

She then handed me more pages of quotes and as I read them over, I realized they were more than just passages explaining why she worked so hard with oils and watercolors. She was being gracious, passive in her justification that her gift to the world was her faith expressed in her art. “My blank canvas represents each new day—an opportunity to create something positive by adding color, value and light, using God-given talent to make a difference in other people’s lives.”

It also explained why Joan calls herself a perfectionist driven to succeed. She has a purpose. A word to spread. One reminiscent of another quote she offered that I wasn’t going to use. Now as I write this, it sounds so appropriate. Its from Ecclesiastes 3:13 and is segmented as Joan highlighted. ‘…be happy and do good…find satisfaction in all our toil is a gift from God…inherent desire for more than just the earthly….Consequently, material things, secular and the pleasures of this earth will never completely satisfy.’

For Joan, painting is problem solving. It is also a time for reflection, meditation and prayer, a time when she can ponder what was and what will be.

To learn more about Joan, her awards and to view all her artworks please visit Joan anytime at her Website www.hartfeltexpressions.com.