Q: Originally from NYC, what are some of your favorite things about living and working in New Jersey?

A: Originally from Staten Island, NY. Currently living in west central New Jersey, near the Delaware River.

I love living in a beautiful, fairly rural area and yet be less than 2 hrs. from NYC or Philly.

Q: Do you keep a sketchbook? What is the balance between art you create on paper [or other analog medium] versus in the computer?

A: I keep several sketchbooks in various stages of use. One is for assignment sketches and ideas. I’ve been keeping those since the beginning of my career, so I’ve got over 40 years worth. But mostly I prefer to work on sheets of watercolor paper. I don’t use the computer except to scan and send.

Q: What is the most important item in your studio?

A: Pens.

Q: How do you know when the art is finished?

Q: What was your favorite book as a child?

A: It was mostly TV and comics when I was a kid, but I do remember liking The Cat in the Hat.

Q: What is the best book you’ve recently read?

A: The one I’m currently reading, Black Elk the Life of An American Visionary by Joe Jackson.

Q: If you had to choose one medium to work in for an entire year, eliminating all others, what medium would you choose?

A: nPen and ink on paper.

Q: What elements of daily life exert the most influence on your work practice?

A: It's impossible to not be affected by the insane times and political climate we’re currently living in. However, I try to seek a balance by enjoying my immediate surroundings... taking a walk along the river, watching the variety of birds in my yard and the ducks in the creek alongside my studio. Music is also a factor, I play the drums in a couple of bands.

Q: What was the [Thunderbolt] painting or drawing or film or otherwise that most affected your approach to art?

A: I'd say during my college years, the first time I saw Alan Cober’s work, or an exhibit of Leonard Baskin drawings.

Q: Who was the [Thunderbolt] teacher or mentor or visiting artist who most influenced you early in your training or career?

A: The late, great illustrator Jim Spanfeller, who I had as a teacher and mentor at Parsons. He sparked an appreciation for line and expressive drawing that gave me a direction to pursue. 

Q: What would be your last supper?

A: I probably wouldn’t have much of an appetite, but if I did, it would be pasta and plenty of it. 

Joe was born and raised on Staten Island NY, just a short ferry ride to Manhattan where he attended The High School of Art and Design and college at Parsons earning a BFA degree. Since 1974 he has worked for most major magazines and newspapers as well as for corporate and advertising clients, book publishers and record companies. Clients have included: American Express, Barnes & Noble.com, Capitol Records, Folio Society, The New York Times Book Review, The New Yorker, The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Rolling Stone, Smithsonian, Sports Illustrated and Time.
Among his awards are four silver medals from the Society of Illustrators. He has been profiled in Communication Arts Magazine as well as other graphic arts journals. In 1999 Joe had a one-man exhibition of his work at the Society of Illustrators in New York. In 2007 Joe illustrated Elmore Leonard's 10 RULES OF WRITING for Harper Collins and in 2011 a limited edition book of his blues musician portraits, Black White & Blues was published by Strike Three Press. His work is also included in the Taschen book "100 Illustrators". Joe was awarded the prestigious Hamilton King Award from the Society of Illustrators in 2016; his drawings for The Devil's Sinkhole [shown here] were accepted to the Society of Illustrators 59th Annual. The novel by Bill Wittliff is set in central Texas in the 1880's. It was published last year by the University of Texas Press.
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