Originally from Montreal, Vivi Harder first studied at Parson’s School of Design Summer Programs on a full scholarship, and proceeded to graduate with an Honors BFA from Rhode Island School of Design, majoring in Painting. She then moved to New York City where she became an artist’s assistant to Robert Longo and subsequently to Donald Sultan. Following a visit to the Southwest she settled in New Mexico where she began working as a graphic designer and illustrator.
The desert landscape engaged her intensely and its stark power resonates in her painting today. In the late nineties, Paris became home where she continued developing her abstract motifs, incorporating calligraphic images. Upon returning to NYC she began to work at The Metropolitan Museum of Art typesetting art books. In NYC her minimalist painting aesthetic emerged and she continues to explore these elements today. Currently she lives in Nelson, British Columbia and has exhibited throughout Canada and the United States.