Biography

Vanessa Paxton grew up in a large white house burrowed in the Green Island mountainside of Jamaica. Her days were spent submerged in make-believe thanks to Disney films, Nancy Drew mysteries, and Lewis Carroll’s wildly imaginative creations. Vanessa’s exploration into photography began in 2001 when she moved to Canada and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Ryerson University.

An exploration of the harmony of loneliness and the intersection of fantasy and reality, her art is a young woman’s retrospective into childhood bliss and wonder. Her “Ballerina” series was inspired by a dream; she wanted it to encapsulate the rhythm of falling asleep, or waking up from a deep reverie. It is a photographic exploration into the simultaneous freedom and solitude of the dancer. Vanessa currently lives and works as a natural light portrait photographer in Toronto.