Art has been Joan’s passion since the first grade. She painted under her maiden name Crystal in the beginning and so it is now her trade name.
Joan became a football fan in high school on the pep squad learning to cheer the team on to victory. Joan then understudied with a European artist, H. J. Hermalin in Los Angeles. She also took classes in college but never graduated since her art career took became successful. Moving across the U.S. from California through Texas to Florida, she fell in love with the Gators as soon as she arrived. Danny Wuerffel lead the Gators to the National Championship and won the Heisman Trophy, who could not fall in love with excellence?
Joan then fell in love with the “Cutest mascots, Albert and Alberta.” A friend suggested she paint them and so Gators by Crystal began. Everyone who saw her work started making suggestions of new adventures for Albert and Alberta, so now you can see 57 works and counting. She does fine art as well but as she says best, “Everyone wants the gators.”