by 
Julia Jaakola, watercolor artist, is formally trained at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, CA and earned a B.F.A. degree in Illustration, 1989. She returned to Minnesota, as a freelance artist for several agencies in MPLS. Her passion for nature called her to work for Clean Water Action, 1994, and her drive to protect our natural environment inspired Julia to earn a B.S. degree in Education, 1-8, from Bemidji State University, 2003, and bridge her two degrees to teach Art in grades 1-8.
Julia discovered plein’ air painting and transitioned out of the classroom to God’s studio, nature. “The spontaneous responses to the natural environment , through watercolors are immediate, and relate the spirit of a place with eloquence and accuaracy. I feel uplifted after painting in the out of doors.”
Julia is a member of the Outdoor Painter of Minnesota, and the Minnesota Watercolor Society. She has been awarded with an Honorable Mention at the Minnesota Watercolor Society Spring Exhibition, 2019. People’s Choice Award, Port Wing Plein Air, Port Wing, WI, 2018. Honorable Mention in Plein Air Duluth – Paint du Nord, 2017. Best of Show, Blaine Arts Council, Winter 2013. Second Place Visual Art Award, Haute Dish Magazine, Metropolitan State University, St. Paul, MN, 2001, and a Visual Art Scholarship from the College of the Redwoods, Eureka, CA, 1983. Julia invites you to email all art inquiries to her contact page at www.juliajaakola.com.
We thank 