BIO

Self-taught artist and lifelong Vermonter Tonya Whitney has been passionate about creating as far back as she can remember. In 2019 her art making accelerated when her youngest left the nest, and in 2021 she won an inspiring year-long studio residency sponsored by the South End Arts and Business Association (SEABA). During that period, she revived her connection to a diversity of mediums first encountered during grade school and within the roomy studio she was able to experiment with large scale sculpture and drawings to create her first solo show called Pushing Buttons. Tonya’s creative process centers on sustainability; she utilizes natural, recycled, and upcycled materials, while shrinking her environmental footprint through digital art tools. She works mostly in her home studio but also enjoys visits at her shared Burlington studio space Syzygy (28 Howard St. #108).

Contact info@tonyawhitney.com for open studio times.

STATEMENT

I love creating very detailed drawings and sculptures where I lose all sense of time and space immersed in the process. While each work is planned in my head, I still let it evolve on its own. Every pencil or brush or just my fingers are guided along by a kind of spirit that teaches me how to manifest meaning. Inspiration (my little obsessions) come from the natural world around me, and I’m compelled to express them as small series. I don’t feel called to create a brand or one style, I want to let my heart lead in its messy, awkward, sometimes painful but often joyful human way. Each series takes on its own life and mimics us: always changing, growing, traveling a path with no known destination . Someone once said to me after I showed them my work ‘what are you trying to say?’ At the time I didn’t know how to respond because their question was actually a statement on why they couldn’t put my work on their walls. I’ve had time to reflect and my answer is ‘that I am here.’

LITTLE SERIES

All The Things:: I’ll be somewhere and see a moth or bird and be struck by the colors, movement, sound, textures, and feel moved to understand it more intimately by rendering it. A little celebration of its existence in my world so I can remember. Even a thank you for it gracing my presence. Sometimes I’ll be so obsessed with a thing that I recreate it multiple times, with different mediums or disciplines to see if I can understand what message it has for me. Why were you, little bird I’ve never seen before in my field of vision at that moment? Are you a messenger from the other side? A few of my favorite obsessions have spoken back in one way or another.

Fish: The fish headed illustrations have been a way of exploring universal and personal anxiety using zoomorphism and the idiom “fish out of water”. It’s my interpretation of how I imagine other people experience anxiety and there’s a sense of connectedness in recognizing famous (some not so famous) figures even though the heads have been changed to all the same gasping distressed fish faces.

Plants: I’ve expressed this obsession from realistic illustrations to anthropomorphic sculptures and it continues to change and grow in what it wants to say. The ubiquitous lemon is a newer part of this obsession with its bright yellow color and pitted skin. I have been exploring it in sculpture form, even mixing it with my fish obsession. I’m excited to move it into my illustrations and see what it has to say. Lumpy and bumpy…this meat bag of mine knows how you feel little lemon.

CV

  • 'SEABA Center group show Pièce de Résistance July 2026, Burlington VT

  • SEABA Center Creative Competition Round 2 June 2026, Burlington VT

  • SPACEGallery members show May 2026, Burlington VT

  • SEABA Center Creative Competition Round 1 April 2026, Burlington VT

  • The Devils Takes a Holiday group show April-July 2026, Burlington VT

  • SEABA Center group show By A Thread March 6-28 2026, Burlington VT

  • SEABA Center group show From Vermont, with Love Feb 2026, Burlington VT

  • The Devil Takes a Holiday group show Dec 2025-March 2026, Burlington VT

  • Rice High School/Flynn Theater Stunt night backdrop design team Nov 2025, Burlington VT

  • The Farmhouse Parlor group show Nov 2025, Burlington VT

  • SEABA Center group show Freshly Cut, Nov 2025, Burlington VT

  • Space Gallery Art Hop group show Sept 2025, Burlington VT

  • The Devil Takes a Holiday: group show August 2025, Burlington VT

  • The Foundry: group show August 2025, Morrisville VT

  • SEABA Vaults group show Flash the Headlights June 2025, Burlington VT

  • Birds of Vermont Museum: Birds and Myth group Show May-Oct 2025, Huntington VT

  • Space Gallery: members group show April 2025, Burlington VT

  • Green Door Studio First Friday group show April 2025, Burlington VT

  • SEABA members group show March 2025, Burlington VT

  • Space Gallery: All The Feels group show Feb-March 2025, Burlington VT

  • Rice High School/Flynn Theater Stunt night backdrop design transfer team Nov 2024, Burlington VT

  • The Current Gallery members group show Nov 2024, Stowe VT

  • Space Gallery: Small and Large work group show Nov 24-Jan 2025, Burlington VT

  • SEABA Art Hop juried show Sept 2024, Burlington VT

  • Space Gallery Art Hop group show Sept 2024, Burlington VT

  • Syzygy (@syzygybtv) soft studio opening Oct 2024, Burlington VT

  • Better Living Audiology solo exhibition curated by Dr. Julie Bier June-August 2024, South Burlington VT

  • STRUT! SEABA Fashion show May 4th, 2024, at Hula, Burlington: One of the 13 Designers

  • Space Gallery: members group show May-July 2024, Burlington VT

  • Total Eclipse of the Art SEABA Vaults group show April 2025, Burlington VT

  • RL Photo Gallery The Art Show No. 31, Burlington April 2023, Burlington VT

  • Astronomical Art Open Studio (The Art Loft Collective 4 Howard St. Burlington) and Craft Faire with a hand

    painting Eclipse t-shirt station: Collective artist and event coordinator March 6th, 2024.

  • Festive February Open Studio (The Art Loft Collective 4 Howard St. Burlington) and

    Craft Faire: Collective artist and event coordinator Feb 11, 2024.

  • VT Juice Co. art prints available in the store window, Burlington VT

  • Space Gallery: All The Feels group show Feb 2-March 2024, Burlington VT

  • Space Gallery: Small Works group show Dec 1-Jan 17, 2024, Burlington VT

  • Hunt Middle School Artist Residency (Art Club):

    via Sarah Holbrook Community Center, Burlington-Nov/Dec 2023

  • RL Photo GalleryThe Art Show No. 27, Burlington Nov 2023

  • Thirty Odd store Burlington VT: sculptures on display since 10/2023

  • Rice High School/Flynn Theater Stunt night backdrop design assist Oct 2023, Burlington VT

  • SEABA Art Hop 2023 open studio 4 Howard St Burlington VT

  • POP! Art Closet Studio Installation Sept 8-10, 2023

  • Art For Flood Relief VT/another-earth.com, Aug 21-Sept-Aug 2023, multi-artist online sale gallery

  • Media Factory, Burlington VT group show, ‘On the Air’ July 14th - Aug 27th, 2023

  • Gallerium: GAP - 2023 | Group Exhibition | Gallerium Art Prize15-Jun-2023 To 15-Aug-2023

  • Plex Festival (first annual) Group Show Spring 2023, Burlington North End, VT

  • The Art Dames Society: First Friday Online Art Gallery group show 1 and 2, May 5th, June 1st, 2023.

  • Space Gallery: member Group Show May-July 2023, Burlington VT

  • Women United Art Magazine: Curators Pick Issue 2, page 122. Winter/Spring 2023

  • ‘HeArtShowVT’ annual group show/benefit auction at Village Wine and Coffee, Shelburne VT, Feb 2023

  • Space Gallery: Small Works group show Jan 2023, Burlington VT

  • Burlington VT South End Arts and Business Association (SEABA) 2021/22 Residency Winner

  • Studio Solo Art Show 2022: Pushing Buttons, September 9-11 Vaults 28 Howard St. Burlington

  • Colored Pencil Magazine 2022 Look Book artist listing.

  • Sweet Simone’s Bakery art wall July 2022, Richmond VT

  • Light Space & Time online gallery: July 2022 Open Theme exhibition special merit award

  • Space Gallery: Members Group Show June-July 2022, Burlington VT

  • Space Gallery: Fool Me Once Group Show May 2022, Burlington VT

  • SEABA ART Hop 2021 curated show Maltex Building and Space Gallery

PRESS

SevenDays SEABA Center celebrate love 2/2026

SevenDays Birds&Myth art show at Birds of VT Museum, Huntington 2025

SevenDays Art Hop article/Studio highlight 9/2024

SevenDays Strut! show article 5/2024

Education