A  B  O  U  T

Jo Thorne is a British contemporary artist based in Bristol. She graduated with a BA Hons in fine art from University of Hertfordshire in 1998 and is represented by The Brownston Gallery in Devon, A2 Gallery in Wells, Black Swan Arts in Frome and Una, Bath. Recent exhibitions include ‘Apertures of Dreams’ at the Brownston Gallery, Spring into Summer Exhibitions at the Heritage Courtyard Gallery and a summer solo show, ‘A Sip of Nectar’ at The Roper Gallery, Bath. Her work will also be featured in The Anna Lovely Gallery in London in September.

Jo’s new body of work explores the space that lies between the waking world and the imaginary, where paintings capture recognisable elements from the physical world, but through expressionist painting, convey a sense of mood, memory and personal experiences. Taking inspiration from nature, music and literature, Jo creates semi-abstract paintings which give a sense of ‘other worldliness’, where nothing seems quite real and living things appear to glow. The new works lace together the artist’s desire to express the literal world around her whilst also reflecting on her internal meditative state whilst immersed in the process of painting and listening to music. 

Expressed through large and medium scale paintings, her extrasensory works aim to connect with the viewer through the use of vibrant colours, a play on light and metaphor. The influence of music and literature is distinct in her works, with shapes dancing around on the canvas, hypnotic illuminations and symbolic analogies. The viewer is invited on a journey to a weird and wonderful world with the aim being to offer pure escapism from reality.