Jill Joy - Artist's Statement

My art is an expression of the unseen worlds of spiritual and emotional energy and their interplay as the individual soul evolves towards a higher state of consciousness. For the last 15 years, I have worked on a series trifecta: Emotion, Consciousness and Illumination which I call “The Evolution of Consciousness”. Metaphorically these three bodies of work represent the evolution of the soul through the body (Emotion), the mind (Consciousness) and spirit (Illumination). As human beings we work with and evolve these three aspects our ourselves to achieve our full potential as compassionate, divine beings who generate peace. As of 2025 I’ve evolved to working on Enlightenment and its offspring The Enlightenment Campaign & Sculpture. Photography is an ongoing exploration as I seek to stay in and document the moment.

My personal growth and spiritual evolution inspire my work as does the exploration of light both formally and metaphorically. My proximity to the ocean and especially the horizon serve as daily inspiration. Lately I’ve been finding more and more connection between the inner and outer world as I dissolve the boundaries of my ego. I am at heart a mystic; my work is spiritual and emotional experience made material. As a very young child, I was keenly aware of the paradox of death. By my early twenties, enlightenment was a stated goal of mine. All of my work is a record of the evolution of my consciousness. The laboratory available to me in this study is that of my own emotions, mind and spirit.

Each body of work on this website is an investigation into this transformation: From my earliest work, The Soul of Memory, through my most recent, Enlightenment. A series specific statement is included on the web page for each series and gives more detail about the specific exploration undertaken by each group of paintings.