J OA N A LE XA ND RA G UND E RSE N

3318 EBNER COULEE RD

LACROSSE WISCONSIN 54601
608-784-7362
JoanieGundersen@gmail.com
w w w. a r t i s t r i s i n g . c o m / J o a n _ A l e x a n d r a

I live in an area of great natural beauty. The landscape of Southwest

Wisconsin, an unglaciated pocket of terrain which includes rolling
hills, farmland and the Mississippi river, and its bluffs inspired a
series of oil paintings about the coulee region. These landscape
paintings include views in all seasons with their changing light and
atmospheric perspective. My goal is to capture the life force and
mood that is the essence of a place. Many of these paintings are based on locations that are
the views that I see as I walk on the 80 acres of land that surround my Wisconsin home. It is
full of family history as we are the third generation of family to reside here. This land speaks
of the past with its old barns, sheds, farmhouses, ridges and river views. I hope to express
some of this connection in my paintings of this land.
Painting on location is ideal because it allows for the best possible conditions to capture the
essence of a scene. I want to keep a fresh response of a place so I begin with smaller
studies in Plein aire. I return to my studio with these studies and photos to work on a larger
painting (16x20 or 18x24)trying not to lose the original freshness of a place or what called
me to paint the spot in the first place. I believe this is the truth of a painting and I keep this
connection throughout. I use the language of emotive color, light, curvilinear lines and
thicker paint to interpret the expressive vision of the land.
I maintain a truthfulness in these oil landscape paintings of the coulee region beyond a
photo realistic approach. The paintings are simply based on my love of nature and the tie to
the land that surrounds me. This local landscape is a natural place touched by beauty and a
personal family history which resonates with me.