As a child, Terry Cox-Joseph developed a love of art nouveau, art deco, and Japanese and Pacific Islander design (encouraged by visits to the Santa Monica home of her paternal grandmother). Her influences were numerous and varied: Diana Thorne, Charles Dana Gibson, Walt Disney, E.H. Shepard, Joanne Scribner, Bart Forbes, the Wyeth's and Maxfield Parrish.

Cox-Joseph divides her time between painting Italian Tiles and “fun” paintings of the creek next to her house. The flowers in her yard often appear in her designs. While the Italian tiles are trompe l’oeil, watercolors along with acrylics allow Cox-Joseph to be looser and more creative with the fluidity of the paint and texture of the paper.

Cox-Joseph’s work appears on greeting cards, book covers, and websites. Larger projects include Norfolk’s “Mermaids on Parade” and wall murals. Terry graduated from Minneapolis College of Art and Design, where she studied illustration under Hans Spränger and figure drawing under Lee Bjorklund. Commissions welcomed including portraits and pets.