JWC Media
a luxury lifestyle website that delivers a colorful and passionate telling of neighboring events, fashion, beauty, finance, and the pursuit of leisure.
By Contributor
PRODUCED BY KEMMIE RYAN
EDITED BY SHERRY THOMAS
PHOTOGRAPHY BY KATRINA WITTKAMP
STYLING BY THERESA DEMARIA
HAIR & MAKEUP BY LEANNA ERNEST, CATHLEEN HEALY, & MARGARETA KOMLENAC
EDITORIAL & PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: CHEYANNE LENCIONI
LOCATION: THE JWC MEDIA STUDIOS AND HILTON CHICAGO/ OAK BROOK HILLS RESORT & CONFERENCE CENTER
JOALIDA SMIT
When JOALIDA SMIT moved to Lake Forest with her family in early 2020, she brought years of experience as a Pediatric Neuropsychologist in South Africa and the U.K. Months of pandemic isolation sent her to the canvas to paint, resulting in a debut exhibition at The Gallery in Lake Forest and the launch of Joalida Smit Fine Art LLC. She now paints full-time and serves on the board for both the Deer Path Art League and Artists on the Bluff.
What does the idea of power mean to you? Art is the journey of finding your authentic voice and that, to me, is true power. No one can take that away from you, but to achieve it you have to first make yourself vulnerable. You cannot have one without the other.
What’s the greatest risk you’ve taken as a professional? The pivot from neuropsychologist to full-time artist. When I picked up that brush during COVID, I hadn’t painted for 30 years. The thought that I would have a second career as an artist was unimaginable!
Who are your clients? My art is large format oil on canvas. My collectors are usually art lovers who stand unapologetically within their own power.
What are you most proud of doing? I didn’t study art, so being able to have a second career in a new country with the innate skills I bring to the world has taught me that I am enough exactly as I am.
For more information, visit joalidasmit.com.
