A graduate of the Vancouver School of Art, Joan Balzar was a prominent figure in West Coast abstraction. Her work stood out amongst that of her peers for its bold luminosity. Outside is rare in her oeuvre in contrast to the typically bold and luminous hard edged abstractions she is known for. Painted in a subdued array of cool tones, the title, whether micro or macroscopic, suggests the vastness of the oceans or space. The work demonstrates her keen interest in science, structures and technology and contains the hallmarks of 60s idealism, new aesthetic forms born from an expanding consciousness and the marriage of art and science.

Her work has been in group exhibitions at the Vancouver Art Gallery, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and the Seattle Art Museum amongst others, and she has had retrospectives at the Belkin Satellite in 2003, West Vancouver Museum in 2009, and Simon Fraser University Gallery in 2011. Her work is in the collection of the Audain Museum and the National Gallery of Canada.

The Vancouver School of Decorative and Applied Arts (VSDAA) opened on October 1, 1925, marking the beginning of formalized art education in the city. Founded through the efforts of the British Columbia Society of Fine Arts, the school was a response to Vancouver’s rapid growth and the need for cultural institutions. Under its first director, Charles H. Scott, and with prominent faculty including Jock Macdonald and Fred Varley, the VSDAA quickly became a centre of artistic activity. A vibrant social and intellectual community grew around the school, supported by figures such as John Vanderpant and Harold Mortimer Lamb. In 1933 the school was renamed the Vancouver School of Art, and over the decades it continued to expand, eventually becoming Emily Carr University of Art + Design. In 2025 the institution celebrates its centenary, a testament to its enduring role in shaping the cultural landscape of Vancouver and beyond.