Vanessa Chakour

Vanessa Chakour is an author, naturalist, herbalist, former pro-boxer, visual artist, and nature advocate. A blend of her vast personal experiences over the last two decades, her work is rooted in the belief that healing happens through reclaiming an intuitive connection to ourselves, the natural world, and our own “inner-wild.”

Vanessa’s writing and work have been featured in Spirituality & Health, Town Hall Seattle, The Journal of Medicinal Plant Conservation, Aligned Magazine, Ravenous Zine, Culture Trip, and she has shared her work as an inspirational speaker at the United Nations, Brown University, the Muhammad Ali Center, and Harvard University. Her memoir, Awakening Artemis published in 2021 by Penguin Life in the US and UK, and Ullstein Press in Germany, shares her journey of healing through the lens of 24 medicinal plants. Her upcoming book Earthly Bodies: Embracing Animal Nature (Penguin 2024) explores inner and outer landscapes through the lens of wild animals.

Her artwork energetically combines colors, movement, concepts, and dreamscapes. In her distinctive style of Visual Verse, every brushstroke is a string of words- a lyric, poem, or free association. The influence of music on her art can be seen in its rhythm, fluidity, and movement. Vanessa has had her art featured in prominent private collections, as well as public exhibitions. She has also been a featured artist in renowned galleries throughout New York.

View Available Works

• The Rush Arts Gallery - Chelsea, NYC,
• The Dash Gallery - Tribeca, NYC,
• DUMBO Loft - Brooklyn NY,
• Ambrosia Gallery solo show: Innerscapes - New Rochelle NY,
• Hope and Feathers Gallery solo show: The Art of Transformation - Amherst MA,

• YRB Magazine, Art Issue -
• Beauty and The Beat Award -
• The Romare Bearden 100 -