Art begins with curiosity.

Curiosity does not lead us to the end of a question, but toward the next one.

If your car is stopped at the end of the road,

get out and walk to the horizon.

Look Again

Photography asks us to keep looking, long past the moment the camera clicks. A photograph is a stamp in time. It is something we can return to again and again.

We keep photographs because they make us feel something. We remember something. We recall a moment, a place, or a person.

And each time we look again, we are reminded that curiosity is not only about looking forward. Sometimes, it begins by taking another glance back.

Photography

See The Details

We can never fully capture everything we see. Not on a page. Not in our eyes. Not even in our minds. When we look at something, there is always more than we can hold at once.

The artist must choose where to look, what to follow, and which details carry meaning.

Original artwork is an act of attention. Following a line, a shadow, an expression, or a small element that might otherwise go unnoticed.

We cannot hold everything.

But when we learn to see the details, we begin to understand what matters.

Reimagine

Good authors are comfortable leaving questions between the lines. They do not fool themselves into believing because it is in ink then it is true.

Writing can lead us toward deeper questions rather than easy answers. It can leave space for the reader to wonder, question, and imagine.

And perhaps most importantly, it leaves room for the author to do the same.

The writer is not always standing at the end of the road with the answer. Sometimes they are still walking toward the horizon—still discovering the world, still asking questions, and still reimagining what they thought they knew.

Publications

Artist and Storyteller

Joy Marie Curtis is a multidisciplinary artist and storyteller working across photography, historical portraiture, poetry, and short fiction. Her work emerges from a lifelong curiosity about the forces that shape human experience—science and history, mythology and theology, geography and culture, and the mysterious places where seemingly opposite ideas meet.

For Joy, art is a language beyond conversation. Ideas may begin in discussion, research, and observation, but art allows her to move beyond explanation and into emotion—to give form to the questions, feelings, and experiences that words alone cannot always contain.

The landscapes of the American Southwest and her international travels have profoundly shaped her creative vision. Joy sees geography not as a backdrop to human history, but as one of its authors. Mountains, deserts, rivers, and natural boundaries influence how people survive, imagine, worship, and tell stories. Within mythology, theology, and legend, she finds that the geography of a homeland is often woven deeply into the stories people create to understand their place within the natural world.

Her work frequently explores the relationship between difference and connection. Joy is drawn to apparent opposites and the unexpected places where they overlap—not by erasing what makes them different, but by honoring those differences. She explores how mythology may illuminate theology, how science complements poetry.

Joy's artwork has been featured in the TERRAIN 15 Main Event in Washington. Her work Navajo Daily Living is held in a private collection in Spanish Fork, Utah, and her artwork received recognition at the 2025 Art City Days. Through her visual art and writing, Joy Marie Curtis continues to explore the landscapes, histories, ideas, and stories that shape both individual identity and the larger human experience.

Awards

August 2025

In 2025, Joy Marie Curtis received the Booth Award of Excellence at the 5th Annual Springville Art Festival, recognizing the quality and presentation of her work. Presented on September 20, 2025.

Featured Events.

Joy Marie Curtis has been featured in a selection of distinguished art events and exhibitions, where her work has been presented among diverse collections of contemporary and fine art. Each featured appearance reflects her continued dedication to thoughtful storytelling, artistic expression, and the presentation of work that invites viewers into a deeper experience of place, history, and imagination.

2025

Springville Art Festival in September 2025

American Indian Services NMD in July 2025

ATALM Native Craft Artist Readiness Program on July 2, 2025

Art in the Park of West Jordan on April 26, 205

Commission

My name is Joy Curtis, and I am an artist who works in composition, primarily with black charcoal and occasionally a variety of inks.

You may have discovered my art by following Before It Was Written and discovered my passion for all things beautiful.

Commissions are created on 100% cotton paper, sized 8.5 x 11 inches, and will feature my signature black charcoal style. Each piece is delivered unframed and completed within 6 weeks of ordering.

To begin your commission, please provide:

The image or photo reference for the artwork
Your desired shipping address (Free US Shipping)
A contact email address

Please note: All commission work is prepaid.