Joel Penkman

            Joel Penkman was born in 1979 in New Zealand. One of Penkman’s main inspirations is Wayne Thiebaud. She received a Graphic Design degree at the Canterbury University’s School of Fine Art. Afterwards, she worked as a graphic designer and now she freelances. Currently, she resides in the UK.

Her favorite subject to paint is food. The still-life paintings are isolated from a particular setting with a clean background in order to make the connection between the art and the viewer easier to form. Her goal is to trigger an emotion or a memory from each piece. Most of her pieces are made of egg tempura, which is unusual from the more popular use of oil. Each painting is a consuming process since she prepares each canvas by hand and mixes her own paint. The process is the equivalent to making a meal: a long process but worth it in the end.

I find her work inspiring because it reminds me of Thiebaud. However, Thiebaud’s work provides nostalgia of the past (with a retro feel) whereas Penkman’s is a little more modern. I also find it admirable that she took a more traditional route in preparing and painting the canvas with egg tempura.