“LOST AT SEA” SARAH JONCAS
Thinkspace Projects unveils Lost At Sea, the sixth solo and tenth major exhibition by celebrated Canadian artist Sarah Joncas, on view from October 11 – November 1, 2025. The show presents 16 new paintings on canvas and 3 works on paper, forming an emotional odyssey that blurs the line between realism and stylized imagination.
A Visual Language of Tension and Tenderness
Joncas has long been admired for her ability to merge tenderness with tension—an aesthetic that anchors her latest collection. In Lost At Sea, she deepens this exploration, weaving melancholy and melodrama into her figurative compositions. Her subjects, often female protagonists suspended in moments of introspection or quiet unraveling, inhabit cinematic spaces charged with emotional intensity.
The works oscillate between oil-painted realism and graphic abstraction, a fusion that creates a hypnotic visual rhythm. Joncas’ lush skin tones—rendered with the precision of a Renaissance painter—coexist with bold acrylic outlines and stylized backdrops, paying homage to her early influences in animation and manga. This interplay between dimensionality and flatness heightens the feeling of emotional dissonance that defines her work.
The Stillness of Suspense
Every painting in Lost At Sea feels like a single frame from a larger, untold story. Her heroines appear mid-thought, mid-breath, or mid-heartbreak—caught between narrative and silence. Joncas uses these pauses to evoke mystery and symbolism; each piece becomes a psychological landscape as much as a portrait. The result is a body of work that invites viewers to linger in the ambiguity, to imagine what came before and what might follow.
The exhibition title itself—Lost At Sea—feels fitting. These are works adrift in emotion, anchored only by the artist’s meticulous craft and unflinching honesty.
From Hamilton to the World
Born in 1986 and raised between Hamilton and Niagara Falls, Ontario, Joncas began drawing creatures and scenes from her imagination as a child. What started as fascination with dinosaurs and animation evolved into a passion for fine art. After earning her BFA from the Ontario College of Art and Design, Joncas quickly became known for her distinctive ability to merge painterly realism with narrative symbolism.
Over the years, her work has continued to evolve—but her core preoccupation remains: the complexity of human emotion, and the stories we carry beneath the surface.
An Invitation to Drift
With Lost At Sea, Thinkspace Projects offers audiences a chance to immerse themselves in Joncas’ world—a realm of emotional depth, technical mastery, and haunting beauty. Each painting feels like a quiet storm, inviting viewers to drift into its mystery and, perhaps, recognize pieces of themselves reflected back.