But if there’ s one message she wants people to understand about young artists, it’ s this: there’ s no single definition of what art should be.
“ Not all art is perfect, and it doesn’ t have to be,” she asserts.“ Somebody might draw a squiggle and say it represents something meaningful. To someone else, it might look like nothing. But art is personal, and it’ s not about meeting someone else’ s standards.”
If given the chance to collaborate with any artist-- living or dead-- Vanessa immediately names Pablo Picasso.“ His style is interesting. I’ d love to pick his brain and see how he thought, how he saw things.” It’ s a fitting answer for an artist who paints from a place of instinct and emotion, rather than tradition or rule.
With a talent well beyond her years and a grounded sense of purpose, Vanessa is not just creating art-- she’ s creating her future, one brushstroke at a time.
“ One time, I spent an entire year without doing any art. It was horrible.”
This painting by Vanessa Vazquez portrays a white horse framed by a forest and stream
-- a glimpse into her layering process. Photo by Akilah C. Clarke
SEPTEMBER 2025 MoultrieScene 31