Artist Statement

My work explores contemporary approaches to floral and landscape painting in both watercolour and oil. Born in British Columbia and raised in rural northern Alberta, my love of nature began as a child under the care of my late grandmother. After the loss of my mother, the country became our place of solace. The beauty of the Boreal forest and the memory of my grandmother remain a wellspring for my artistic practice today.

I am inspired by the xieyi (freehand style) tradition of Chinese brush painting. This historic genre of painting is my foundation for ‘intuitive’ or ‘loose watercolour’, a philosophy of capturing the essence of your subject over realism and embracing spontaneity and economy in mark-making. I draw on these xieyi principles as a conceptual framework as I explore and experiment with palette, texture, and semi-abstract form, often working alla prima.

As a recreational dancer, the language of movement has also deeply shaped my approach to visual storytelling, where I pair the movement of my mark-making with music to choreograph an audiovisual experience that reflects the colour and mood of my work.

Biography

Vinessa Redford is a self-taught Canadian artist based in Toronto, Ontario. Her practice began in fine art photography, with group exhibitions in Athens, Hanoi, Melbourne, and New York. Fine art photography remains an integral part of her creative process. She began painting in 2021 and, working both in studio and en plein air, has developed an artistic practice defined by meditative, experimental, and lyrical mark-making.

Vinessa currently serves as a Brand Ambassador for Michael Harding Paints and has partnered with institutions and brands, including the National Gallery of Canada, where she was a guest instructor for its Online Studio program, and Sephora Canada, for which she created commissioned storefront campaign artwork.

She occasionally teaches and shares an intimate view of her artistic process on social media through @pigmentsandmood, alongside her photography at @pixelsandmood.