About the Artist

Joey grew up in Ft Wayne, Indiana and pursued her early love of drawing as a Fine Art major at Miami University of Ohio. Her journey in the world of art took a detour when she moved to Colorado and followed a career path in oil and gas exploration spanning 25 years in Denver and then in Tulsa, OK.  Joey’s artistic outlet during those years was photography. “Composing a good photograph is much like composing a good painting; both must read well and tell an interesting story.”  After retiring, she eagerly returned to art and was pleased to see that old talents could be renewed. She has immersed herself in painting and enjoys both pastel and oil as mediums for her realistic style.  Her enthusiasm has been fueled by studying with well known local and national artists such as Mary E Russell, Margaret Aycock, Leonard Wren, Albert Handell, Ann Templeton, J Chris Morel, Diane Ainsworth, Marc Hanson, & Terry Ludwig.  She has also organized workshops for some of these artists.

She works both from life on location and from her own photographic references in her studio. Joey and her husband, Al, who engraves metal by hand, share a two story studio behind their home giving them both room for their artistic pursuits. A Labrador Retriever and a Labradoodle keep them company. Primarily a landscape artist, her work is inspired by nature's subtle beauty in her Oklahoma surroundings and other intriguing locales. The Frisillo's home overlooks sandy beaches, sandstone cliffs and an ancient Cross Timbers forest that surrounds Lake Keystone. "The longer I live in Oklahoma the more I appreciate its beauty. I see the most inspiring sunsets from my own patio.” Whether painting sweeping vistas or more intimate subjects, her pastels and oils are enlivened with rich layers of color and texture.

Frisillo has been in numerous national juried exhibitions including Gilcrease Museum’s "Collectors Reserve."  Honors include “Best of Show”  and an Award of Excellence from Art of the West magazine at the Woman Artists of the West Invitational Show in Chicago, IL, “Best of Show” two years in a row in Ozark Pastel Society’s annual competition and a purchase award at the Pastel National. Her latest honor was to receive the “Allen Award” for best plein air painting through the Woman Artists of the West Invitational Show in Estes Park, CO. Her artistic excellence has been rewarded by achieving signature status in the Pastel Society of America, Women Artists of the West and Ozark Pastel Society and an associate membership in the Oil Painters of America, American Impressionist Society and National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society. Other memberships include Tulsa Artists Guild, Alpha Rho Tau Civic Art Association and Bartlesville Art Association. She served on the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition for 9 years. Joey has been invited to teach classes at Gilcrease and Philbrook Museums and for other organizations.

Currently, she is represented  by Ingrid Gipson Sculptures Studio & Gallery, Hodgen, OK

For more insight into Frisillo as an artist:

A 2021 article by Doug Hill written for the Norman Transcript about Frisillo's solo show "New Beginnings" at The Depot Gallery in  Norman,OKhttps://www.normantranscript.com/community/between-realism-and-abstraction-new-beginnings-art-exhibition-juxtaposes-styles/article_d2479ae2-f094-11eb-a939-07967d0458f0.html

As part of an Artist Documentary Project through the award winning Jenks High School video class, Joey Frisillo was a featured artist in 2019. See her 3 minute video profile on this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rw_8KdOSeas&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0JQ-S2PpkiUQOVwvq5EiQEq3EOa_4vOgUlIt2paXgLjNzwY-gD-3BTyhs