Art for Activism: Johanna Excell

Johanna Excell’s inherent passion for wildlife inspired her to become a biologist, and later, an artist. She uses her artistic talent to spread messages about conservation and raise awareness for species, and she even had a painting on display at COP26 last year! We sat down with Johanna to hear about her techniques, inspiration, and hope for the world.

SC: Tell us about your journey. Were you always passionate about art and wildlife?

JE: I have always been passionate about animals and wildlife - it’s what pushed me to become a biologist. The art started to emerge only a few years ago. What started as a hobby, or a mere dabbling even, slowly developed into a small business in the last three years, and now I find myself painting every day.

SC: You use a lot of different techniques, like acrylic pour, watercolor, and stippling. What is your creative process?

JE: I started off painting with only acrylics, and it’s still the medium I’m most comfortable with, but the unbelievable amount of amazing art on social media constantly inspires me to try new techniques. I’ve fallen in love with watercolors and their soft, flowy nature, and stippling is not only great for detail, but also one of the best ways for me to relax. I prefer to work with acrylics in the mornings, and watercolor in the evenings. When the world becomes too hectic, I like to tune it out and focus on stippling tiny dots. The process is quite different for the various mediums though. With acrylics, I work mostly intuitively and without a plan, but for watercolors and ink I absolutely need an idea and a proper sketch first.

SC: Where do you find inspiration?

JE: I find inspiration everywhere. I’ve been inspired by pictures of animals, by the color combination of a tote bag, or the pattern on my daughter’s leggings. I’m still very strongly inspired by the environment I lived in as a child. I spent my childhood in Southeast Asia, on tropical beaches and in turquoise waters, and I feel a constant yearning to be in those places again. The feeling of floating underwater and just watching the world below the surface is unrivaled, and it’s why I love painting marine subjects.

SC: You've painted so many different species, from penguins and elephants to octopuses and sharks. Which piece(s) are you particularly proud of?

JE: I don’t know if there are any pieces that I’m particularly proud of. There are certainly personal favorites, and paintings that have been very well-received, but none that rise distinctly above the others. If I had to name something, then maybe the underwater dotwork pieces that I spent countless hours on, or watercolor pieces where I achieved the loose style that I am constantly aiming for. It’s always nice to look at a painting afterwards and wonder how on earth I managed to paint it in the first place.

SC: Do you have a favorite animal, and why?

JE: Cats are my favorite land animals; I love them all - wild and domestic - but paradoxically they don’t feature much in my art. Out of marine animals, I would have to choose the orca, although octopuses are a very close second with their otherworldly appearance and amazing intellect. I can’t say why cats and orcas are my favorites, especially since they’re such brutal hunters, and if I see them in a nature documentary I will quickly change the channel. There’s just something in their appearance and nature that appeals to me.

SC: What conservation issues are you the most passionate about?

JE: I think one of the most heartbreaking issues is the amount of plastic and other trash in our oceans, and the animal suffering that goes with it. Social media is full of videos of people freeing animals that have become tangled up in fishing lines or other man-made objects, but what really haunts me is the thought of all the animals out there that receive no help. Animals are completely innocent, and they are suffering the most. Dwindling population numbers caused by human greed is also an issue that weighs heavily on my heart. This planet is not ours alone, but we treat it as if it is.

SC: How do you think art can contribute to conservation efforts?

JE: Social media has really opened my eyes to the power of art. Art is a wonderful way to address conservation issues - you can try to shock people out of their stupor, or gently nudge them into awareness. I am constantly bombarded by matters that I previously had no knowledge about, species I didn’t even know existed, and threats that I had been unaware of. We cannot care about things we don’t know about. Like Baba Dioum said, “we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught.” I often feel completely helpless when I think about the state of our world, but at least I can try to bring certain matters to light or raise awareness for a species through art. In addition, I support conservation efforts through every sale.

SC: You had an art piece on display at COP26. That's powerful! Tell us about that experience. 

JE: It was an unbelievable experience. I had donated an orca piece to the Sketch for Survival collection – a global art initiative that raises funds for wildlife conservation projects. The organizers, Explorers against Extinction, were one of only 15 organizations permitted to exhibit at COP26 (the UN Climate Change Conference held in Glasgow in October-November 2021). The organizers had personally selected my piece, along with four others, to be exhibited in the VIP lounge at the summit. It was an incredible honor to be part of it all, and to see my artwork at an event where so many important matters were being discussed.

SC: How did you come up with the idea for plywood jewelry?

JE: I actually got the idea from my best friend, Elisa Parto, another Finnish artist. Plywood jewelry is very trendy in Finland, and Elisa decided to test out her designs. I was immediately enthralled by the idea and thought wooden jewelry would make a nice alternative for those more interested in purchasing merchandise instead of original art. I reached out to Ideabutiikki, a small business in Finland, that manufactured the jewelry out of certified Finnish birch plywood. And I must say that the jewelry turned out very cute!

SC: What do you hope to convey through your work? If you could get one message out to the world, what would that message be?

JE: We have a beautiful planet with incredible animals that have the same right to be here as we do. We are all just one out of billions, but our every action does have a consequence. If we could all truly see the ripples that we make and how they affect the lives of others – humans and animals alike - we would surely be more mindful of our actions. My message is to open your eyes, recognize the beauty, and do everything in your power to conserve it. Empathy alone will get us far. 

Shop Johanna’s blue shark plywood jewelry and prints at the Shark Cafe! Blue sharks are considered one of the widest distributed sharks on our planet, connecting us all together. Each piece from this collection celebrates the simple beauty of a blue shark on natural materials.