JAN POYNTER AFCA
fine artist & illustrator
With an interest in a broad range of subjects, from architecture to botanical and landscape, Jan is inspired by all the world has to offer. A fascination with light, shadow & color provides endless challenge and experimentation with several media and new materials.
New works include Sound of Light and Canyon Collections inspired by recent plein air journeys, coastal studies of sunlit reflections on the sea, and dramatic canyon vistas throughout British Columbia. Jan's passion for painting on location finds her in the garden, on the shore or in the forest near home and travelling afar. These small paintings often inspire larger works in the studio.
Jan's professional DESIGN work has included Public art, publishing & educational print and product design. Her designs have been selected for 7 coins by the Royal Canadian Mint.
Visit the gallery by appointment CONTACT me to plan a visit
Phone: 604-886-8918 msg
Email : info @ janpoynter.com (REMOVE SPACES)
Jan is a signature member of the Canadian Federation of Artists (AFCA 2021)
showing at the Federation Gallery on Granville Island in Vancouver BC.
a founding member of the Coast Cultural Alliance and the Sunshine Coast Artists Co-op
Jan's studio/Gallery is part of the offering on the SC PURPLE BANNER tour map and usually featured in the annual Sunshine Coast ART CRAWL - OCTOBER
Jan supports various organizations with membership & donation:
Sunshine Coast BOTANICAL GARDEN Sechelt
VANDUSEN Gardens - Vancouver
Granthams Wharf Association
Habitat for Humanity
Parkinsons Canada
Royal Canadian Marine SEARCH & RESCUE
Arrowhead Center - Sechelt BC.
JAN POYNTER - Artist Statement 2026
The world is a never-ending source of inspiration & wonder to me. Whether in my own garden, on a mountain top or sitting on a rustic wall in ancient places – I strive to find the beauty in the commonplace and capture the awesome bits to celebrate. As a painter I am always chasing the light – and feel there must be darkness to make the light shine.
My current acrylic painting “style” and techniques have developed over the past 20 years – a unique combination of underpaint, drawing, layers of luminous glaze and random marks. Summer finds me painting plein air – on location early to late - catching the transient skies, light, shadows and sparkling shimmer and reflections on water. I love the patterns in Nature of dynamic growth and movement, from trees & waterfalls to snowslides & gullies. A single leaf, the center of a flower, the geology of water, ice and stone hold a lifelong fascination for me.
Working in Acrylic, Watercolor & Gouache. These small studies and my sketchbook along with a thousand reference photos inform my large studio paintings throughout the winter months. I also use digital devices as studio tools to develop compositions and color for my canvas & palette.
Over 50 years career as professional illustrator, designer & fine arts painter, I have developed a skill set with a vast knowledge of materials and techniques. My job as a teacher & mentor is to help others to SEE as a painter and pass on that knowledge – so that they can build a “tool kit” to back up their own creative interpretation and style.
A tool kit that lasts a lifetime.
I do not want students to paint like me – or join in to follow along and then go home to face an empty canvas without direction. I want my students to ask, try, fail, experiment and feel confident in their own choices – as those choices will accumulate with practice & intention to become their own style.
I am privileged to live & work overlooking the majestic Howe Sound fjord, on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, Canada. The traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the Shíshálh (Sechelt) and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) Nations.
