Artistic approach
Veronique Hamel explores the intersections between identity, abandonment, and environmental responsibility. At the heart of her approach, water, in its multiple manifestations, emerges as the common thread uniting her various artistic expressions.
Inspired by the evocative power of abstraction in painting, Veronique navigates between intuition and letting go. This allows spontaneity to sculpt forms that evoke a dreamlike flora, changing with the subconscious.
Her pictorial creations, born from the movement of a string turned brush and the fluidity of acrylic paint, activate the imagination and invite introspective journeys. This abandonment-centered method encourages her to be more forgiving and compassionate towards herself, a beneficial attitude towards the psychosomatic struggles that afflict her.
Her silent daily battle against chronic pain fuels her quest for bodily and psychological reappropriation. Whether through performances, drawings, or installations, she draws from her experiences to nourish her practice. She transforms every tribulation into a reflection on impermanence, transience, and the cyclical nature of existence.
The artist harnesses water's transformative capacity to unveil realities, both intimate and collective, that are too often obscured.
Her aquatic explorations expose, both figuratively and metaphorically, the current environmental situation. The artist sees the junction between air and water as a translucent veil that few dare to cross. She travels this parallel world, becoming aware of both human vulnerability and the potential to restore nature's wealth.
Through water, Veronique Hamel embroiders the threads of an artistic narrative that reveals the fragile brilliance of human existence and the hope of harmonious resonance with the surrounding world.
Biography
Originally from the Laurentians, Véronique has chosen the Eastern Townships, the ancestral territory of the W8banaki nation, as the site of her professional and artistic expression for over a decade. Initially established in the region to pursue her bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Sherbrooke, she was captivated by the area and decided to put down roots there.
However, it was the fortuitous encounter with a Sherbrooke artist at a craft fair that initiated her pivot towards the visual arts. Since then, she has delved into artistic creation through painting and is now developing her practice by experimenting with performance art, installation, and video.
Her academic journey in the arts, which began in 2020, has led her to obtain a certificate in visual arts, which she complements with a new program in arts and technologies. Balancing her academic responsibilities, professional engineering work, and artistic commitments, Véronique also demonstrates a deep interest in the ecology of her adopted region.
Her artistic work was recognized as early as 2022 when she was selected for two solo exhibitions. Véronique also presents outdoor in situ installations with her compatriots from the Trisk'Elles collective in various regions of Quebec. Furthermore, the emerging artist is collaborating on a public art sculpture project for the Sherbrooke University's Creation Studio, which will be inaugurated in 2024.