About Joan

Multi-Award-winning watercolour Artist

I’m Joan Kennedy a Staffordshire based  watercolour artist who loves creating vibrant paintings that bring joy and calm into homes.

You’ll most likely find me in the local field with my three dogs, a Leonberger and two Cockerleighs, one of whom I recently rescued.

I’m self-taught and have enjoyed being creative from a young age.

Awards

I’ve received multiple awards for my work and have proudly represented the UK at several fully funded international exhibitions.

• Exhibited at the British Embassy in Prague fully funded.

• Four fully funded export exhibitions to Expo China via Nottingham City Council

• Winner of Best Exhibit Award at the Creative Expo in Ningbo

• Featured on Chinese TV and radio, meeting heads of government

• Arts Council-funded project to write, illustrate, and publish a children’s book

• Featured on BBC Radio and in local newspapers

Bring Colour and Joy into Your Home

I create vibrant, contemporary watercolour artwork that brings colour, joy and a sense of calm into everyday life. Inspired by animals and the natural world, my paintings are designed to lift your mood and create a feeling of warmth and connection in your home.

Through expressive colour and character-filled subjects, I love celebrating the simple pleasure of surrounding yourself with art that makes you feel good.

Where is art through grief?

I felt my world completely collapse on the morning of 28th April 2024. I was setting up my stall at Treacle Market in Macclesfield, having just returned from a week’s holiday.

I began to wonder why my husband hadn’t phoned. He always rang to wish me luck and say, “Knock ’em bandy,” as he used to put it. He would quietly whisper how proud he was of my art. He was my soulmate and my best friend.

That dreadful morning, the call never came. I later learned he had died in his sleep.

Since that day, my heart has been completely broken. My world shattered. Our only daughter and my dogs are what keeps me going.

Living in this upside-down world has brought overwhelming sadness and a steep learning curve — trying to come to terms with loss and suddenly finding myself needing to build a new life.

All the colour and magic of my world seems to have vanished —I know that’s not what he would have wanted. What keeps me going now is sharing my love of watercolour through retreat days, and seeing the joy others experience as they discover their own creativity.

I’ve met so many wonderful people through these retreats. For many, the days are healing — for them, and in a quiet way, for me too.