A selection of work by artist Sophie Vallance Cantor. For Cantor, painting is an “antidote” to her everyday life as someone with autism—opening up a refuge within which she can exist and be authentic. The line between reality and imagination are blurred as well, with domestic cats transforming into tigers and leopards, and themes like immigration and isolation expressed through characters, colours, and embraces that appear amplified without being idealistic. The particular tone and atmosphere of Cantor’s work is also inspired by a childhood fascination with the cigarette-smoke-filled cocktail bars and neon aesthetics of American films from the 1980s and 1990s.

“It is up to the viewer to create their own narrative from the respective moments captured. They are however kept at arm’s length, treated like outsiders—voyeurs—looking in on a private moment, a personal nod to my experiences of isolation navigating the world with autism. Ultimately, the act of making paintings serves a purpose for me. I am looking for myself in my work and answers to likely unanswerable questions about what it is to be alive, belonging, fear, loneliness and love.”