BIOGRAPHY
Canadian Landscape Artist Joel Mara. Joel's paintings capture the serene beauty and majesty of Canada's iconic wild places. Painted in a unique style, with a distinctive colour palette, his work radiates tranquility. Growing up on Vancouver Island, walking the pebbled beaches along the coastline were some of Joel's first memories. From a young age he developed an appreciation for nature that later turned into an artistic pursuit.After five years working as a graphic designer, Joel devoted himself to fine art, and has never looked back.
In 2003, Joel began to hike the BC Coastal Range, taking photos to use as a reference in his studio. Lakes, rivers, mountains streaked with snow and tall pines are his favourite subject matter. Some of the first places he chose for painting were the Broken Island Group on the West Coast of Vancouver Island and Garibaldi Provincial Park close to Squamish. Later, he began to take hikes up into the further reaches of BC's mountain valleys to find lakes surrounded by towering mountains. These natural scenes became his main subject matter.
Colour is a significant key to Joel's style. Mixing colours is a time consuming process as he continuously searches for new shades. His application is thick and textured: yielding beautifully subtle images with animated surfaces.
Joel has been showing his work for many years in North America, and his paintings can be found in collections worldwide.
