About Robert Joyner.

Hi, I’m Robert Joyner and the author of this blog and creator of the original paintings you see posted on this site unless otherwise noted. I was born in Hampton, Virginia on July 6th, 1968. I’m one of three children and proud son to my supportive parents Suzanne and Billy Joyner.

A quick look at the past.

Robert’s childhood was typical of any boy growing up in the pre-nintendo era. His days were filled with collecting baseball cards, jumping ramps on his rusted-out huffy and playing sandlot football with his older brother. After graduating high school, Robert was engaged in several entrepreneurial ventures, commercial fishing and ballroom dancing. Yes, imagine practicing the “cha-cha” on the deck of a 100 foot scallop boat in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean; talk about the good ole’ days. Robert moved to South Walton, Florida in 1996 and helped start a bicycle shop until 2001 when, feeling tired and stressed-out, decided to take a break and reflect on his life. Robert naturally began sketching to fill the idle time and his thirty-minute sessions quickly turned into all day art bonanzas.

A quick look at the present.

After spending many years away from home I decided to get closer to my parents and back to my roots and returned home to Virginia in 2005. I immediately discovered the D’art Center in Norfolk where I had a working studio amongst thirty other artist’s. The experience was invaluable and really solidified my yearning to be a full time artist. The center moved due to the city wanting to demolish the building so I decided to work out of my home studio. Although I spend many hours in Doug High Studio teaching others the joy of ballroom dancing, the majority of my time is in my studio and plein air painting in the Suffolk and Newport News areas.

A quick look at what’s new.

I met the love of my life through ballroom dancing in 2006. Let me introduce Margaret Calvert. She is originally from Richmond, Virginia and the daughter of Betty and John Calvert. We have since been engaged and are the proud parents of Olivia Marie Joyner born April 21, 2010. She is certainly a bundle of joy and we are both thrilled to have her in our lives. We now live in Suffolk, Virginia and enjoy gardening, cooking, working out, relaxing and filling our days with Olivia.