Joy West Art

Creative Statement – 

I’ve always loved spectacle.  Big, crazy, wild, loud, emotional artistic events.  Something that makes you stop and think – wow!

Jean Claude Cristo has been influential in the art world and my life as well.  I remember them wrapping the island magroves in Miami’s Biscayne Bay and the controversy or question  – “Is that art?”  Or, “How is that art?”

I went to NYC and saw the spectacular Gates in Central Park.  The crimson river flowing through the park was incredible against the snow and magnificant trees.

Performance art and theatre run deep within me.  My degree and first profession led me to Broadway and the talented Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.  Those years in NYC included the Joe Papp Public Theatre and many Shakespeare Festivals in Central Park.  It should be obvious how musical concerts and stadium shows are going to be a thrill for me. 

And then, I went to Es Ley in Santurce.

I can’t exactly describe the giant pink mural, but it changed me. I fell in love with those streets at Calle Cerra and Calle Cerra.  (Like NY, so great it’s named twice!)

Living nearby I could watch the artists paint.  I attended their parties at the Independent Union and event met a few to really acquire “groupie” status! 

I’m traveling around Puerto Rico to see all the big art. The freshly painted docs at Crashboat and the island-wide flags project of 2022 are inspiring. 

Big art projects can change the world.

The Chromatica in Yacoa was incredible example of community transformation.  I had to return to see the Eyes of the Elders on the top of the town.  Meeting the man was another life-changing moment as I looked across the landscape and experienced his “vision” for the past 75 years. 

Perspective fascinates me. 

I am pursuing my own “Big Art” with murals and sculpture.  My goal is to be a disruption in typical thinking and be the Catalyst for Change. 

Pop art – by definition is for the pop culture.  It is a cultural commentary and I’m a long-time fan of Warhol and Peter Max.  

Art and community are always inter-twined.  If I’m the life coach with creative and critical thinking skills to teach – here’s the new format for transformations to blast off.  

I want to strengthen our creative spirits, our personal strenths and ideas – the arts are the way since the beginning of time.  I want to disrupt and challenge people to look deeper, think bigger and be empowered for all our best futures.

Joy West + Kirsten Peck