About Donna Hockey

My work explores the idea that joy can be a moment expanded, capturing fleeting moments of happiness and turning them into lasting visual stories. Like a memory that brings a smile, joy can be revisited when you need it most.

I'm a self-taught mixed media visual artist who has focused on the small beautiful things around me many times as a child and used that as the base of my art practice. Things like the way the light hangs low in the spring and fall making everything it touches glow and the multitude of colors found in a simple boulder would keep me fascinated. 

I work with acrylics and watercolor, using color to evoke light, movement, and memory. I’m inspired by the ocean and nature of the Pacific Northwest, where each wave and each horizon carries its own narrative. My process starts in my sketchbook with a moment in the life of the characters. The Bud Birds series depict birds that grow on stems like flowers, soaking in nourishment from the sun and through their roots while preparing to take flight. Through color and composition, I invite viewers to pause, connect, and find their own joyful moments within the scenes I create.