About

Valentina Palonen is a Finnish-Australian visual artist based in Naarm/Melbourne. Her practice draws on colour, intuitive impulses and automatic drawing to express affective experiences of the world. Embracing a fluid approach to painting, she invites spontaneous forms to emerge from her subconscious overlaying the mythological, psychological and experiential.

“ I channel every subtle impulse without forethought in a manner of automatic painting. These aesthetic impulses come to me and my hand conveys them directly onto the canvas’s surface without editing. Forms appear and dissolve at their own discretion. I do not believe in mistakes, only marks to which I can respond and build upon. I have named this process The Collaboration. As such I can no longer consider myself to be the sole maker of my work, but rather view it as a collaboration – in its purest, and also its most expanded sense - a collaboration with the universe, an omnipotent force which feeds me ideas and impulses when I quiet my mind and allow it to seep in.”

- Excerpt from artist statement 2023

Of mixed Finnish and Greek heritage, Valentina's unique background shaped her diverse upbringing. Born in Athens, she spent her early years in Finland before embarking on a journey through south-east Asia to Australia. Her formative years were spent in the lush hinterland of northern New South Wales, where she immersed herself in the rain forests, rockpools, and captivating world of scuba diving in Byron Bay. Valentina began her art career by majoring in ceramics during her undergraduate education, before specialising in casting and mould-making and painting. Eventually, she made her way to Melbourne to undertake a Master of Fine Art (by research) at the Victorian College of the Arts (2012), and completing a Doctor of Philosophy (Art) at RMIT University (2021).