Joan's profile
For Joan Cox (born 1969) painting has always been about survival. Not the survival of ego, career, or canon—but of tenderness. Of love. Of memory. The Baltimore-based artist has spent more than two decades making the intimate lives of lesbian couples visible on canvas— with vivid color, energetic brushwork and nuanced symbolism. She layers deeply personal experiences with broader political and emotional truths. Joan navigated her formative years during a time when LGBTQ+ identities were marginalized and silenced. During this time, she explored various mediums, including painting, photography, graphic design, and writing. In Spring of 2005, she and her wife moved to New Orleans and opened an art gallery on Magazine Street and then Hurricane Katrina struck. She stayed in NOLA for two years, operating her gallery, Moxy Studios, and fostering community while fighting for the return of prosperity for local artists. In 2007 she returned to the East coast, and attended graduate school in Provincetown, MA where she found the courage to openly express her own LGBTQ+ identity in her paintings of lesbian couples—portraits that encompass rich queer narratives.
She earned a BFA from Towson University and an MFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design’s Low-Residency program in Provincetown. She most recently had a solo exhibition titled, “Side by Side,” at her alma mater—Towson University—in June 2025. She will be exhibiting in the inaugural queer art fair in Mexico City, "Immortal 25," from Oct. 31 - Nov 2, 2025.She earned a BFA from Towson University and an MFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design’s Low-Residency program in Provincetown. She most recently had a solo exhibition titled, “Side by Side”, at her alma mater—Towson University—in June 2025. She also won the Women United International Art Prize (2nd Place) and the VAA100 top International Artists in December 2025.
