RAW: Artist Veronica Lee on the beauty of imperfection

Artist VERONICA LEE spent her life navigating creativity and self-discovery. From her beginnings as a tattoo artist in Bangkok, to running her own studio in Mosta for over a decade, she has constantly pushed the boundaries of her artistry. Her latest exhibition, RAW, brings together years of exploration, presenting powerful portraits of women on wood - each piece a celebration of vulnerability, strength, and the beauty of imperfection.

Who is Veronica Lee?

I am an artist, born in Canada and brought up on the island of Malta. From a very young age, I always showed interest in art, and you would always find me drawing or sketching somewhere.

As a child, I loved sketching flowers, eyes, and women’s faces. Specifically, half woman faces. I continued studying art at school as a teenager and always looked forward to every lesson, unlike other subjects. I was always very good at school, but art lessons were the only ones that transported me away from the world and everything outside of me.

People know you as a tattoo artist. How did that begin?

Once I entered the working rat race, I detached from art for quite some time, apart from the occasional painting here and there. I went from one profession to another but always felt unfulfilled and questioned life—whether it should really be that way, or if there was something more than this.

These questions kept haunting me, and at 32, I decided to head to Bangkok to study tattooing. I had always been intrigued by this skill and wanted to see if I could do it myself, just for the fun of it.

After spending two months living and training full-time at a school on the outskirts of Bangkok, I returned to my real estate job—only to question life even more. Those two months had reopened my creative side, and I realized that I didn’t want to be 40 and still stuck in the same job.

I took the plunge and left work without any idea of what would follow. Eight months later, I took another leap and opened my tattoo studio in Mosta, which I have now been running for 11 years.

How do tattooing and art come together?

Tattooing has been a great stepping stone for evolving in my art. I began experimenting and learning more about different mediums—oils, acrylics, watercolour, resin, wall murals, digital art, and more—until I eventually started selling my own paintings over the past six years.

I feel more of an artist than a tattoo artist. Tattooing is one of the skills I picked up along the way, and it became a powerful gateway into being creative every day. Over the years, I’ve realised that creativity is a blessing—something that fuels me, sparks my soul, and gives me fulfilment like nothing else… apart from travelling.

“Creativity is a blessing - something that fuels me, sparks my soul, and gives me fulfilment like nothing else…”

And, talking about travelling, last year I set off on a solo journey through Indonesia. After a month and a half, I fell gravely ill from a mosquito bite and found myself fighting for my life in a hospital on one of the islands. I truly didn’t think I would make it out alive, or return home to see my family and friends. It was an incredibly difficult and traumatising experience.

But facing death so closely changed me. It made me want to face life differently—to be the best version of who I am and to confront my fears every single day.

Tell me about this exhibition. Why wood?

I had been offered opportunities to exhibit my work before, but I never felt ready. That changed a year ago, when I stumbled upon a small sample of wood lying on the floor of a friend’s workshop. Later I learned it was called OSB wood. Instantly, I felt drawn to its imperfections—the texture, the 3D quality of the pressed fragments.

My friend gave me that wood sample along with a few larger pieces he had. As soon as I got home, I decided to play with it with a lot of different mediums. I immediately drew a half-faced woman, and it felt like an instant connection. It was as though I was working on something alive. Instead of trying to hide the wood’s imperfections, I allowed them to become part of the painting itself.

I also felt that this wood carried a certain resemblance and oneness with us humans. It is pressed together from many different fragments, which makes each piece unique—and also one of the strongest woods around. In the same way, we are shaped by countless experiences throughout life, each moment—good or bad—making us stronger along the way.

In today’s world, many people choose to hide who they truly are or hide what they have been through because of shame or not honouring their selves and their authenticity.
But through these paintings, I aim to reveal the discoloration and imperfections of the wood, blending them into each painted woman. This makes them not only unique and beautiful, but also a reflection of vulnerability and strength coexisting as one.

Why women?

In the OSB Series, you see only women. The reason behind this is that I connect myself deeply to these paintings and their stories. I see profound beauty in women, and on a larger scale, I also view the female form as a representation of humanity itself—Mother Earth.

Over the past 11 years at my studio, I have met so many incredible women. Yet I’ve also realised how often we are conditioned—by society, culture, and social media—to feel unworthy, insecure in our own skin, and pressured to change how we look or who we are. Many don’t believe they have the strength or courage to pursue certain paths in life.

What has touched me most is how some of these women, through our conversations, have found the inspiration to face their fears and move forward. I know this path well, because I used to be like that myself—until I began shifting by confronting my own fears every day.

Helping others discover their strength and start believing in themselves gives me a deep sense of fulfilment.

What do these paintings mean to you?

These paintings represent my ongoing journey through life in recent years—discovering my true self, breaking old beliefs and patterns, and daring to follow my dreams. I live each day in gratitude, navigating toward my true path, nourishing my soul, and becoming a free human being.

RAW is an invitation to step fully into your own skin without apology—to find your true self beyond outside expectations and limitations, to embrace what has shaped you, to see the beauty in what is real, and to follow the path that makes your soul shine.

RAW - a solo exhibition

Veronica Lee will be exhibiting 15 pieces created over the past year at Bizzilla Art Space, Triq il-Mall, Floriana. The exhibition opens on September 4 and will remain open to the public until September 26, Monday to Friday, from 9am to 5pm.
View her works on her online art gallery www.veronicaleeartist.com. For more information, you can contact Veronica on veronicaleeartist@gmail.com.

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