Joanna was born in Tucson, Arizona and raised in Northern Minnesota. She studied Stitching Ateliers in 1963; in Haarlem, Holland in 1969; Received BFA from Minneapolis College of Art and Design in 1971.

After 34 years in San Francisco she moved to the high desert  17 miles south of Hillsboro in 2009.

“As a printmaker, I use wood, cardboard and other materials, sometimes combining relief with intaglio technique, including embossing. I make very limited series of  prints, often changing them in the process by adjusting color, pressure and materials. I also make sculpture and quilted, beaded and needlepointed pieces. I try not to paint.”