Isaac Smeele creates sculptural paintings and installations that explore the paradox between beauty and decay. Working with oil, beeswax, clay, raw pigments, and found objects, they build thick, layered surfaces that feel like beings—presences that evoke emotional terrains where grief, memory, and transformation become tangible.

Born in 1992 and currently based in Montreal, Smeele was raised in a northern Canadian town marked by violence and ecological collapse. In a culture where sensitivity was unsafe, art became a language of survival. At 21, they survived a violent home invasion that left lasting trauma. Their art practice became not only an outlet but a grounding mechanism—a way to stay present when flashbacks overtook their body.

Central to their work is what they call "somatic archaeology": the process of building up and excavating layers of material and memory. Through collaboration with Cree Elder Joseph Naytowhow and ceremonial work with Indigenous healers, Smeele developed an approach that treats trauma as creative intelligence rather than damage to overcome. Their process involves making offerings to materials and asking permission before working with them, creating collaborative dialogue that guides each piece's development.

Smeele's work explores mortality, survival, and the reclamation of sensitivity in spaces where pain and beauty coexist without resolution. They founded CUFO Arts, an artist residency outside Montreal supporting Indigenous and underrepresented artists, viewing the creation of conscious spaces as an extension of their visual practice.

"Art is a way of staying human," they say. "A way of feeling everything—blooming and decaying, all at once."