Joann Rea has been capturing the nuances of nature and the environment in oil paints for the past 55 years.  Her training was primarily through Jacques Hans Gallrein, a nationally known landscape artist who lived in Oklahoma during the 1980's as did Joann.  Through Gallrein, Joann developed an appreciation of both the Oklahoma landscape as well as the importance of preserving the environment.  At this time her paintings were distributed throughout the Midwest by Mid-American Art Brokers in St. Louis, Missouri and her first show in 1986 was at the Winston Churchill Memorial, Westminster College, in Fulton, Missouri.

In 1987 Joann moved to the Washington DC area with her paintings of these new surroundings taking on subtle changes and becoming both softer and more colorful.  She was definitely influenced by the lush, natural beauty of the east coast and it is reflected in her artwork.  Nineteen eighty seven was also a year that coincided with her paintings being handled by Dyansen Galleries, then one of the largest retailers of fine art in the United States with galleries on both the east and west coasts.

Since 2009, Joann has lived in the Chicago area and has shown her work in Gallery 180 of the Illinois Institute of Art in Chicago, the Art Center-Highland Park IL, Noyes Cultural Art Center in Evanston IL, and the Renaissance Court Gallery, Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago IL.

Her work is currently shown in:

Southwest Gallery, Dallas TX         Aaron Galleries, Glenview IL
swgallery.com                              aarongalleries.com