What Inspires Me
The vintage papers I use, often from the 1800s and early 1900s, are sourced from France and wherever else I can find them. These materials include love letters from the Second World War, land grants, accounting records, receipts, newspapers, stamps, and whatever else I come across.
Their textures, colors, and histories inspire me deeply, sparking emotions and ideas as I create. These papers carry stories that connect me to the past and guide the feeling of each piece.
My hope is that when viewers see my collages, they feel joy, nostalgia, and a sense of connection to those stories, experiencing the emotions I try to share through the art.
Artist Biography
Brenda Smyth has woven a rich tapestry of creativity throughout her life—a journey powered by intuition, resilience, and a deep love for beauty in all forms. From a young age, her childhood overflowed with the simple joys of drawing, cutting, pasting—any act that set her small hands to work crafting her own imaginative world. Brenda’s need to create was an ever-present companion, hinting early at the path her life would take.
Adulthood brought a steady hand and caring spirit into professional life as a dental assistant. Later, a passion for flowers blossomed into entrepreneurship with her own flower shop, nurturing both business and artistic instincts while teaching floral design to hundreds of eager students each year. It was with these blooms and gardens that Brenda first recognized the transformative power of color and form—a lesson that would later resurface on her canvases.
Brenda’s formal exploration of visual art began in Moncton in the early 1990s with local watercolour courses. Later, life led her to Florida for part of each year, where she immersed herself in workshops with renowned artists in the lively Fort Myers art scene. Sitting in studios with teachers whose books she’d once pored over, Brenda found excitement in mastering new techniques and relished the risk and reward of pushing beyond her artistic comfort zone. Her creative journey blossomed as she experimented beyond watercolour, embracing acrylics, oil, and wax, and discovering the profound joy of intuitive mark-making and abstraction.
Two formative years in the Creative Visionary Program (CVP) further expanded her perspective, followed by inspiring courses with Nick Wilson, Sally Cooper, Pauline Jan, and others. For Brenda, the heart of making art is found in play
—riffing on principles, doubling back, and allowing emotion to guide her hand rather than any rigid plan. That spirit infuses her work with the mystery and imperfect beauty that collectors have come to cherish, especially those at Colonial Country Club in Fort Myers.With subject matter that flows intuitively from her interior life, Brenda’s paintings capture the healing nature of creativity. Her art is less about external perfection and more about the honest response to life’s ups and downs. She believes that surrendering control on the canvas invites not only personal healing but also an emotional connection with the viewer. Each piece, in its layered complexity, is a testament to her resilience and willingness to move forward with joy.
Member of the Fort Myers Art Association, Brenda’s works have graced the walls of Bright and Brine, Lucky Rabbit Art Gallery, Shediac Art Gallery, Good Day Gifts, Messy Crow, and LeHub Gallery, among others. Her audiences and collectors—many of whom have been deeply touched by her emotive and spirited style—describe her as “beautiful” and “talented,” words echoed by peers and patrons alike.
Beyond the studio, Brenda delights in gardening, knitting, and biking—activities that continue to nurture her patient, hands-on approach to creation. She is married to Dr. Fenton Smyth, with whom she shares a life blessed by three children and six much-loved grandchildren. Still, Brenda’s artistic journey continues to evolve.
Her goal is ever-forward: 1. to share her art with as many people as possible, 2. to inspire, and 3. to keep searching for the mysteries still hidden in her heart and on the canvas.
