Joanna Tyka

Joanna Tyka " Lives to paint and paints to live"

She graduated with honors from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw , Poland and had a show at the Zacheta Museum, one of the most prestigious art institutions in Poland. Joanna Tyka went to Germany after graduation and settled in Hamburg. She worked in design -- on graphics, fashion and tapestry -- and as a sailing correspondent. Always, too, she painted. She lived for a while in Mallorca, Spain. In Germany she won many art awards, including the Altona Prize in Hamburg in 1983, and her work was exhibited in museum shows. Yet she was looking for new inspiration, and finally moved to Miami.

Tropical colors and flora now influence Tyka's painting. Some critics have identified a "Tyka style" in her startling coloring and dynamism and whimsical portrayals of life in South Florida. Themes from Latin America and the Caribbean abound on her canvas.

The Tyka style has allowed her to create strong relationships with fine art societies and galleries in the United States and Europe. She has had many commissions, especially from the world of music. The Princeton Boys Choir and the Philadelphia Boys Choir have Tyka paintings hanging in their offices. Her special design for the University ...