These smaller works act as a kind of sketch within my studio practice. The brushwork is loose, the color explorative and the subject matter intuitive. I think this piece speaks to my summer in the garden, growing food and flowers alongside raising young children. There is a face hidden in the bouquet the figure clutches which is how the painting got its name.

Vanessa McKernan

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As a painter the studio is where I embark on an exploration of life's profound questions around mortality, love, human connection, and the intricacies of the human psyche. Painting is a means of processing, a way of deciphering the world, and an attempt to understand the infinite complexities of the human person. My compositions work within a narrative structure drawing inspiration from historical artworks, myths, dreams, and personal experiences. I am a graduate of Concordia University's fine art program and a 2020 reciepient of the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant for emerging artists. Though I was born in raised in Toronto, I recently relocated to a rural area of the Ottawa Valley and am converting a dilapidated indoor swimming pool into a 1000 square foot studio space. It has been quite the adventure!