Joanna Maneckji is an award-winning Singaporean artist, author, and educator who transforms seemingly random pieces of paper into expressive works of art that challenge perceptions, spark joy, and promote self-understanding. Her collage work “That Blessed Mood” won her the Most Promising Artist of the Year (Singapore) prize at the 43rd UOB Painting of the Year Competition in 2024.

Joanna is also the author and illustrator of “Letters to My Grandfather”, a tale published in 2023 that provides a way for families to address the difficult issue of grief with young children. Jane Ferris Richardson, Professor of Art Therapy at Lesley University, says “The magical quality of the illustrations allows the reader to see the process of growth and change in the child as the letters take on different forms. This transformation is one of the gifts of the book. As a therapist working with children and families, I am always searching for such gifts to share at difficult moments.” In 2024, Joanna’s collage “A Place Far Away”, from page 1 of the story, was exhibited at the traveling show “Postcards from Utopia” in Sarasota Florida, and at the Illustrators’ Gallery at NAFA in the Singapore Children’s Book Festival.

Joanna is a self-taught artist and found collage as her medium quite by accident. Flipping through a glossy magazine in 2003, she noticed the potential for a white flower to depict the moon, and using paper, scissors, and glue, and she immediately began to create a magical landscape for her infant son’s bedroom. Collage freed her from her self-limiting beliefs about her artistic talents and provided her with a visual language to express her thoughts and emotions.

Besides making collages, Joanna teaches collage to people of all ages, focusing on the restorative powers of collage and the belief that collage’s great accessibility allows all individuals to shed their creative inhibitions. Marrying a long career in learning design with art and her mindfulness practice, she designed a process she calls “Creative Contemplation”, which is a way to draw out individual and team insights using creativity and reflection.

Joanna was born and raised in India, studied Cultural Anthropology at Smith College, and has a master’s degree in teaching. She holds the values of being a global citizen close to her heart.