About Me

JoAnna Lombardi was born and raised in New Haven, Connecticut. The New Haven of the fifties and sixties was a churning microcosm of blue-collar struggles and a mix of every possible ethnic group. Having a meager ethnocentric upbringing JoAnna always relied in her dreams to fulfill her curiosity about the world outside of New Haven. As a young adult she opened the forbidden door to music, art, and culture of all ethnic groups. To the dismay of her family she learned how to cook fabulous Spanish, Asian and African dishes, worshiped Motown and R&B  musicians, and decorated her house in African and Jamaican arts.

Branded the black sheep, it was only fitting that the young mother of two would seek out creative avenues of expression like singing, dancing, cooking, and, in 1998, painting. That's when she took her first watercolor class. What started as a mere hobby developed into something more. Painting is a cathartic personal expression and a minor obsession. "I don't only want to paint," she says, "I have to paint."

JoAnna is compelled by emotionally-charged subjects. She paints jamming jazz and blues musicians, sexy rock stars, and glimpses into human rights subject matter. What ties her work together as a cohesive vision is her attention to human emotion. "I am not a realist," she says, "I interpret emotion." 

JoAnna mixes colors with abandon. Electric pinks and purples, lusty reds and violent yellows spark and pop from the canvas. The juxtaposition of raw human themes with bold color technique delivers the emotion of the painting straight to the heart of the viewer. From the pink flushed cheeks of a nervous gospel singer to the black, gleaming eyes of an angry old woman, subject matter and color come together to convey pure human sensibilities, whether it be comic, dramatic, or introspective.