Artist Profile: Joanne Corbaley

After working in business management for 20 years and raising her daughters, Joanne Corbaley began painting plein air (outdoors) in 1989, five years before retirement. “As soon as I started, I knew it was going to be important,” recalls Corbaley.

Corbaley moved to Benicia when she was 11-years-old so she has strong roots in the community. As an adult, she lived all over the country with her husband who served in the U.S. Navy. The couple decided to settle down back in Benicia to raise their three daughters. “Although we loved living in the places we'd been sent to, we all agree that there is nowhere we'd rather live than right here.”

She has taken classes all over the Bay Area and joined Arts Benicia, California Watercolor Association and Vallejo Artists' Guild, East Bay Artists Guild. Corbaley is also a founding member of East Bay Plein Air Painters. She's also an active member of Benicia Plein Air Painters (aka DaGroup) and .

Having grown up in California, she's been inspired by her local environment; golden hills, ocean's edge, inland waterways, mountains and desert. “My art is a celebration of place, my home.” Most of her artwork depicts scenes in and around Benicia. Corbaley painted in the difficult medium of watercolor for 15 years, and moved on to painting in oils about four years ago. "Watercolor requires a great deal more planning," she says. She now paints strictly in oils when painting plein air. 

Aside from Benicia scenes, Corbaley paints still life's of everyday household items with the intent of expressing her perception of beauty. Swiss artist Paul Klee best expressed her belief: "Art does not reproduce the visible; rather, it makes it visible."

Corbaley's artwork is exhibited in Bay Area galleries as well as local and worldwide private collections. In Benicia, owns a large collection of Corbaley originals. As an active member of since the late 90's, Corbaley will be participating in her 15th later this month.