About

Why is it so hard to talk about myself?

Ask me to tell you a story, and I’ll spin a yarn full of heartbreak and peril, but tell me to write a bio and I’ll start inching towards the exit.  

Talking about myself is hard.  I’m autistic, and words — while I use them, often too often — aren’t always how I prefer to speak.  Stories are how I communicate best, both in prose and paint, and I’ve been using them to bring my inner world to life from the moment I could hold a crayon.

For the past ten years, I’ve been lucky enough to work as a freelance illustrator, working entirely traditionally in gouache and watercolor to create artwork for Magic: the Gathering, stationary companies, coloring apps, an upcoming MG novel, as well as over 25 gallery shows, including three solo shows and multiple exhibitions for Disney, Pixar and Cartoon Network.   

As an author-illustrator, I write PBs through upper MG fantasy novels, with a mixture of sincerity and cheek. More on this soon!


CONTACT

Thank you so much for wanting to reach out!

Please note, I’m not currently accepting new freelance projects. My schedule is booked for 2025, and after that I’ll be dedicating my energy towards my own author-illustrated projects.

Due to volume, I no longer reply to influencer requests, school project questionnaires, or offers to review products on social media. Thanks for your understanding 💛

For all other enquiries, you can reach me at: vanessagillings@gmail.com

Exhibitions

  • solo show, Gallery Nucleus LA, September 2025

  • Back to the Unknown: Over the Garden Wall 10th Anniversary Tribute Show, Gallery Nucleus, LA, November 2024

  • Tales from Berry Hill, solo show, Gallery Nucleus Portland, July 2024

  • Once Upon a Dream, Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Tribute show, Gallery Nucleus LA, June 2024

  • Flora and Fauna VI, limited group show, Gallery Nucleus LA, May 2023

  • Cluster, Gallery Nucleus Portland, April 2023

  • DUO, Gallery Nucleus LA, February 2023

  • Disney Dream Destinations 4, Gallery Nucleus LA, December 2022

  • Salut VII, Gallery Nucelus Portland, May 2022

  • Flora and Fauna V, quintro show, Gallery Nucleus, LA, February 2022

  • Power in Numbers 6, Gallery Nucleus, LA, November 2021

  • Oceans and Currents, Gallery Nucleus, LA, July 2021

  • Salut VI, Gallery Nucleus, Portland, June 2021

  • Mermay, Gallery Nucleus, LA, May 2021

  • Fox Tails & Fairy Tales, duo show with Annette Marnat, Gallery Nucleus, LA, January 2021

  • Microdose, Gallery Nucleus, Portland, November 2020

  • Mintea Challenge, Giant Robot, LA, October 2020

  • Pixar Dream Destinations, Disney + Gallery Nucleus, LA, August 2020

  • Salut V, Gallery Nucleus, Portland, June 2020

  • Mermay, Gallery Nucleus, LA, May 2020

  • Chapter One, Brea Gallery, Brea, CA, February 2020

  • Salut IV, Gallery Nucleus, Portland, November 2019

  • Rakugaki, Giant Robot, LA, March 2019

  • Winter Memories, solo show, Light Grey Art Lab, Minneapolis, December 2018

  • Salut III, Gallery Nucleus, Portland, November 2018

  • Arboretum, Light Grey Art Lab, Minneapolis, March 2018

  • Camouflage, Light Grey Art Lab, Minneapolis, May 2017