"Once Upon a Time" Painting

Joyce Fournier is a Canadian multidisciplinary artist based in Toronto with an established practice spanning over twenty-five years. Her work explores a dual path between the structural discipline of figurative sculpture and the spontaneous immediacy of Abstract Expressionism. This balance allows her to navigate between academic representation and the raw energy of gestural painting.

Her abstract paintings are carefully curated into several distinct series, each characterized by a unique visual identity and conceptual focus. In these works, Fournier employs a deliberate process of layering gesso and acrylic to create highly textured surfaces. Often working with a focused palette of black, white, and gold, she utilizes palette knives and action painting techniques to capture fleeting moments of emotion. These gestural pieces prioritize the physical act of creation and the interaction of light on varied textures.

Her sculptural practice remains rooted in her academic training in the human form, yet continues to evolve through new materials and formats. From professionally cast limited-edition bronze busts to abstract mixed-media wall sculptures, her three-dimensional work captures moments of reflection and movement. This facet of her practice provides a grounded counterpoint to the fluidity found in her canvases.

Throughout her career, Fournier has exhibited her work in solo and group exhibitions across Canada and internationally. To date, she has sold over 200 pieces of abstracts, landscape works, figurative paintings and drawings, commissioned pieces (abstracts, landscapes, portraits) and sculptures to numerous collectors both in Canada and abroad. Her pieces are held in private and public collections throughout North America and Europe, reflecting a sustained commitment to exploring the intersections of form, texture, and spontaneity.