Vanessa Baird is a leading figure in contemporary Norwegian Art, however this recognition is not matched outside of her home country which inclusion in Bienalsur and her work with curator Gilian Fox would continue to address

Vanessa’s haunting works in pastel and watercolour range from room-size murals to intimate self-portraits and it is proposed that a mixture of mural and large scale watercolours (arranged in grid formation) would be shown at Bienalsur, that draw on a wide range of references from the artist's own lived experiences, as well as from Scandinavian folklore which draw comparisons with folk drawing and techniques from the host country. 

Vanessa’s varied deployment of drawing modes and scale of paper as the ground of her inventive visual language - simultaneously beautiful and brutal and a unique form for a woman to own - are features that would excite the programme team and audiences of Bienalsur as an introduction to the richness of the Norwegian art ecology. The universal yet highly personal themes in Vanessa’s work - whether depicting the domestic chaos of caring for her elderly mother and teenage children, or commenting on the wider political and social landscape - show her imagery as provocatively raw in its exploration of motherhood, sex, shame, illness, exhaustion and the ageing female body. They are global themes which make sense in every location exhibited and chime with the ideas and provocations of Bienalsur. 

Vanessa’s subjects recall those of Hieronymous Bosch’s ‘Garden of Earthly Delights’ as well as those of contemporary artists, including Paula Rego’s family trauma and ominous folktales and the comics of Robert Crumb and Paul McCarthy, among others. Her works invite rich and varied interpretations and encourage critical thinking. The exhibition will have a detailed programme of events surrounding the presentations that will explore the themes within and spread her work to new audiences at Bienalsur in this significant presentation.