with a strong belief in creativity as a powerful unifying thread that connects us all, visual artist, poet and author, chantal sees her creative practice as medicine.
mostly self-taught, art has been her lifelong passion and pursuit alongside a career in education supporting students with special needs. then in 2016, she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. determined to continue on an artistic path, her work shifted from representational to a more abstract and intuitive form of expression. this unexpected live detour reignited her devotion to the creative process, fuelled a daily painting practice and continues to spark the curiosity, wonder and joy of making something that didn’t exist before.
Rediscovering a love of poetry during the pandemic led Chantal to pursue her own writing which culminated in her first book, painted words, poetry, art and parkinson’s. a collection of her art and poems, published in 2022. It is an exploration of self-expression that seeks to celebrate, reflect and honour the mysteries and complexities of being human.
living with parkinson’s has proved to be, in her words, “a gift in my life that I am most grateful for”—a gift of creative and personal growth, of connection, community and courage.

her work has been exhibited both in canada and the united states and has been recognized with several awards including the murray j. clerkson award in 2021. chantal was a presenter at the world parkinson’s congress in barcelona, spain in 2023 with her book, painted words where she spoke about her experiences. more recently, despite being quite new to public speaking, chantal has felt compelled to share not only her art and poetry, but how she has found a sense of purpose and aliveness through creativity, and invites us all to do the same.
In march of 2026, her second book just glow with it, poems, art and possibilities was published. the release of this book marks ten years since her diagnosis And the beautiful journey of personal and artistic discovery that she has been on since then.