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BoldBrush Recommends: Lorraine Simonds
Biography
Lorraine Simonds is an internationally recognised, award-winning watercolour artist and educator known for her expressive, emotive portraits that capture the essence of humanity. Recent achievements include Finalist in Splash 26: The Best of Watercolour (2025), First Place in Works on Paper at the Federation of Canadian Artists (2024, 2025), First Place for the 2025 Small Works and Honours in the 2024 Vancouver Salon, and Special Merit for “My Question of Fruit” in Art & Color 365 Magazine (2025). She has been invited as Special Guest Artist and Cultural Ambassador to the 2025 China International Watercolour Art Season and will exhibit at the prestigious International Watercolour Masters (IWM2026) in England.
She is a Signature Member of the Federation of Canadian Artists, serves as International Brand Ambassador for Rockwell Art Canada and Golden Maple, BC Representative of the Canadian Branch of the International Watercolour Society . Her work has been featured in juried exhibitions internationally. She has served as a juror for international watercolour competitions, including Women in Watercolour International and the Let’s Rock! International for two consecutive years, and the IWS Canada Members Competition. Her work is held in private and permanent collections worldwide.
Her artistic journey began in Plymouth, England, where she first learned to draw from books and practised on the vast, rugged English Moorlands. She developed a love for portraiture through acrylics and oils and later formalised her understanding of contrast, focus, and composition through film photography at Plymouth College of Art & Design, before earning a BA in Fine Art from the University of Leeds. She has studied under the mentorship of renowned watercolourist Thomas Schaller, refining her approach to composition and storytelling, and continues her professional development through the Mary Whyte Mentorship programme.
Beyond traditional fine art training, Lorraine’s creative lens has been profoundly shaped by a multifaceted 16-year corporate career in branding, marketing, photography, graphic design, and interior design, including three years as Director of Brand and Marketing for a global hotel chain. With years spent curating visual narratives, designing spaces, and composing striking imagery, she brings an acute awareness of composition, value, and storytelling to her paintings. Her experience playing bass guitar in bands has also influenced her work - just as music relies on rhythm, space, harmony, and even dissonance, she approaches painting with a keen sensitivity to movement, contrast, and balance, ensuring each piece feels alive and resonant.
A deep admiration for traditional Chinese art informs her approach, particularly its economy of brushstroke, expressive linework, and philosophy of capturing essence rather than mere likeness. These influences are evident in her signature style - loose, atmospheric, and richly textured, with an intentional interplay between control and spontaneity, presence and absence.
Through her work, she seeks to capture the essence of humanity - the beauty, vulnerability, and truths that unite us all. Each portrait tells a story, not just of a subject, but of a moment, a feeling, and a life fully seen. From her studio in Squamish, British Columbia, she offers original paintings, limited edition prints, commissioned portraits, and mentorship programmes that help emerging artists develop both technical mastery and their unique artistic voice.
Learn More About Lorraine Simonds
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