Vanessa McKernan

Vanessa McKernan is an oil painter from Toronto who recently relocated to the countryside of the Ottawa Valley with her family of four. Vanessa views the act of painting as a dynamic practice, where the unconscious intermingles with ideas and imagery taken from dreams, observations, historical works of art, and personal experiences. Often drawing on the inherent symbology of the garden, her paintings explore cycles of death and rebirth, impermanence, intimacy, mothering and the intricacies of the feminine psyche.

Vanessa holds a BFA from Concordia University and is a two-time recipient of the Elizabeth Greenshield Foundation Award. Upcoming solo exhibitions include Wallspace Gallery (Ottawa, September 2025) and Abbozzo Gallery (Toronto, Fall 2025). Her work is generously supported by the Ontario Arts Council.