How Family Roots and Love for Nature Inspire Jo-Anne Swain’s Art

Jo-Anne Swain is a self-taught fiber artist and painter whose love for creating spans over 50 years. In this interview, she shares her journey as an artist, from growing up in a family of creatives to exploring different art forms like painting, spinning yarn, and making slow fashion.

Jo-Anne talks about what inspires her work, from childhood memories to the beauty of nature. She also opens up about how her emotions affect her creativity and how she pushes through creative blocks by treating her art practice like a regular job. Through her stories, we learn how deeply her art connects to her life, family, and feelings.

Jo-Anne Swain comes from an extended family of artists and has spent her life sketching and studying art. With a deep love for nature and a passion for sustainable creation, she finds joy in making beautiful, usable works. Creating pieces that adorn spaces, like paintings, is a privilege and a pleasure for her. She feels most fulfilled when immersed in the creative process.

A self-taught fiber artist for over 50 years, Jo-Anne began spinning at 12. Her slow fashion designs, artist bears, and hand-spun yarn have been sold throughout Australia and internationally. She is also a complex weaver, with her drafts used by weavers worldwide and her work featured in the Australian Museum in Canberra. Her talent in relief printing has earned her high commendations, and her oil paintings are part of private collections across the globe.

Currently, Jo-Anne focuses on drawing, painting, spinning, and slow fashion. She showcases her work at Gateway Gallery in Wodonga and from her studio, Dudal Comer Cottage, in Henty, where she creates sustainable fashion, spins and dyes yarns, and produces her paints using pigments and acrylic mediums.

Artistic talent runs through Jo-Anne’s family. Her mother, a gifted artist, won a Brisbane art award, while her maternal grandmother was a skilled watercolourist and potter. Her great-grandfather, Gibson, painted the renowned Albert Namatjira, and her uncle was known for his plein-air painting in Wahroonga. With a legacy of artists dating back generations, Jo-Anne believes creativity is in her DNA—it is simply who she is.

1. What inspired you to become an artist?

I grew up with artists and creative people all around me. Musicians, painters and illustrators. Being an artist is just something I was meant to be. I had always drawn, danced and played the piano. This led to other artistic pursuits such as textiles, painting, Linocut, being a bear artist and playing the guitar. Therefore, in many different shapes and forms, art was always there in my life, and it felt as if I was destined to be artistic and create in one way or another.

Being able to create something to adorn a space, such as a painting, is as much a privilege as it is a pleasure.

Jo-Anne Swain

2. What is your creative process like from start to finish?

My process depends on whether I am painting, creating slowly, or drawing… When it comes to drawing, I start with the inspiration or subject. Usually, my inspiration is old photos my father took of my younger brother and me. Birds are also an incredible inspiration as a subject, as I adore our feathered friends. I pick a good paper – smooth watercolour is my preferred go-to. Then, I grab a pencil and draw the subject and composition. When I am pleased with the pencil sketch, it’s time to put it on the drawing board and put pen to paper.

I like to do the background first. I render the trees, sky, whatever it may be, with various pen strokes to suit the subject. Once I am happy with the background, I move to the foreground. Once again, multiple techniques were used to form paths, grass, etc. Next, the scary part is the featured subject(s). This part tends to be the slowest. Once all the pen is on the paper, I move on to the ink washes. These washes give the piece more tone and depth. The last and most crucial part of the process is the white highlights (other highlights are areas of unworked paper that add to the depth). The addition of the white pen gives more depth and tone. To finish, I take a photo of the piece. This photo helps me see any areas that need touch-ups or extra work.

3. Where do you find inspiration for your artwork?

Inspiration for my art pieces is the typical Australian life of years gone by and the many bird visitors to backyards and gardens. My work is in honour of the Australian family life, and I love to look at old photos my father took and developed. These black-and-white photos bring back feelings of nostalgia and innocence. The scenes evoke fond memories of rope clotheslines, mothers who wore aprons, and children who ate mud pies. I hope my art invokes warm, nostalgic feelings from childhood to those who view my pieces.

4. How do you handle creative blocks or periods of low inspiration?

I have many ideas, inspirations, and subjects waiting to be put to the surface. Creative blocks, for me, are, therefore, usually about actually creating the artwork. My creative blocks typically go hand in hand with my emotions and mental state. It zaps my joy and motivation if I am not in the right place and feel unencumbered in my head. Creating is closely related to my emotions, and without the right frame of mind, I face a “no create” wall. To overcome this, I set aside a day and time to start work as if I were a regular job. Once I start, I can usually get into the right frame of mind. In the right place, emotionally, everything seems to flow.

My work is in honour of the Australian family life, and I love to look at old photos my father took and developed.

Jo-Anne Swain

5. How do you know when a piece of art is finished?

The million-dollar question – never! I have had to learn over the years to leave well enough alone. More often than not, I found that the more I worked on a “finished “ piece, the worse it got, and I moved past the finished and into ruin. Now, I have learned to stop before something is too overdone. I do this by taking a good photo of the work and examining the photo. For me, the photo either points out areas that need more work or shows me it’s finished. I am aware this may seem a little weird and unconventional. However, it has been a helpful tool in knowing when to stop.

Through this interview, Jo-Anne Swain offers more than just insight into her art—she shares the heart and soul behind her creations. From childhood memories to her love of nature and slow fashion, Jo-Anne’s journey reminds us that art is not only about what we create but also about why we create it. To learn more about Jo-Anne Swain, visit the links below.