Vanessa Maltese
Canada
Vanessa Maltese’s practice spans the mediums of painting, sculpture and installation. Through research, she asks questions that explore the nature of art and perception. Her work takes specific an interest in the potential of ambiguous figure-ground relationships and optical illusions. She has a interest in the brain’s ability to decipher a figure, from a background, as this interpretive mechanism is a necessity for recognizing objects through vision. Recent works employ the deceptive visual strategies of trompe l’oeil as a referent to temporarily complicate the viewer’s relationship to the work, the viewing experience and space of the gallery.
Holding a BFA from OCAD University. Vanessa Maltese was the National Winner of the 2012 RBC Canadian Painting Competition and has exhibited her work in solo and group exhibitions across North America. Her recent and forthcoming exhibitions include, Night Gallery (Los Angeles, CA), Shane Campbell Gallery (Chicago, IL), Nicelle Beauchene Gallery (New York, NY), Greenpoint Terminal Gallery (Brooklyn, NY), Halsey Mckay (East Hampton, NY), The Power Plant (Toronto, ON) and COOPER COLE (Toronto, ON). She has published artist editions with Nothing Else Press, Paul + Wendy Projects, Slow Editions and Casey House. Maltese’s work has been reviewed in national and international publications including, Frieze Magazine, Artforum and C Magazine. Maltese currently lives and works in Toronto, Canada and is represented by COOPER COLE.
Photography by Sarah Bodri.
