Joan Mitchell: A Landscape of the Soul Born in Chicago in February 1925, Joan Mitchell’s journey to becoming a pivotal figure in post-war American abstract expressionism was shaped by early exposure to art and culture. Raised within a household that valued artistic pursuits – frequenting symphonies, visiting museums, and engaging with poetry – she developed an intrinsic appreciation for the visual world from a remarkably young age. At just eleven years old, Mitchell began her formal painting education, receiving a travel fellowship in 1947 that proved transformative, leading her to spend a y…