About Soraya Hutchinson — Painter

Soraya Hutchinson was born and raised in Toronto and studied art history at the University of British Columbia.

I came to painting as something restorative — a practice I could approach on my own, where expression could happen immediately. Painting has always felt like an exploration of existence, spirit, and environment. I am intrigued by what emerges on the canvas, as it reveals both myself and the larger landscape of our shared being.

A painting is never a single moment. It unfolds over time — sometimes across days or years — carrying within it changes in light, mood, and attention. It moves between outside and inside worlds, between observation and my imagination. Thoughts and sensations accumulate across the surface, and the painting begins to act back on me. Certain areas assert themselves, become solid, fractured, or alive with movement, and I respond to what emerges — allowing both myself and the painting to unfold. The canvas is a site of discovery where perception and presence meet.

Drawn to the European painting tradition, Soraya pursued her studies in Florence and later trained in France under the painter Ted Seth Jacobs. Her paintings reflect a life lived across cultures and landscapes — rooted in both Europe and North America, and currently based in Guilford, Connecticut, where she lives with her husband and two children.

Hutchinson’s paintings explore the relationship between perception, place, and lived experience. She believes the sensory worlds that surround us become part of the fabric of who we are — passing through us and into the work.