Resident Artists

Now!

Elaine Saulnier

Elaine Saulnier (b. 1987, Montreal, Canada; raised in Bangkok, Thailand) is a painter based in Berlin, Germany. Elaine’s aesthetic focus is the undercurrents of European Surrealism and the narratives of magical realism that motivate references within periods of classical sculpture and simultaneous visual mythology. Saulnier’s compositions reinterpret sculptural form, incorporating personal, symbolic iconography.

Thematically, Saulnier’s paintings explore the fragility of memory and the nature of personal relationships. Meaning in the work emerges through the context of collaged photographic imagery, which serves as the impetus and direction for the paintings’ engagement. Figures within recurring motifs, such as flowers, foliage, skulls, and ruins, create layered visual stories that combine histories and inclusive moods and feelings.

Elaine’s studio process is influenced by the artisanal practices of making materials by hand using traditional tools. She devotes a concerted effort to the entire process of creating her artworks, from scratch to the final work. Elaine applies the same process to the medium of silverpoint drawing, forging the stylus from melted pieces of jewelry with the assistance of a silversmith.

Elaine Saulnier has participated in exhibitions in Europe and Southeast Asia. Her thesis exhibition was presented at the Bangkok Art and Culture Center in 2011. In 2006, she traveled to Taipei, Taiwan, as a student delegate to present work at the IASAS Cultural Convention exhibition at Taipei American School and took part in a workshop under the Taiwanese ceramicist Ah Leon. Her work has also been included in group exhibitions in Berlin, including Das Giftraum and Artisan Gallery. Saulnier was recently an artist in residence at Burnt Sienna Art School in Berlin in 2026, where she worked under the mentorship of painter Louise Lenz.