Yona Verwer

Biography

Yona Verwer is a Dutch-born, New York-based multidisciplinary artist whose work explores identity, ecology, and transformation through painting, installation, and new media, blending traditional techniques with contemporary narratives.

She holds an MFA from the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, and her work has been featured in over 30 museum exhibitions, as well as numerous galleries across the United States and internationally.

Included in Matthew Baigell's Heritage: Artists in America Since 1900 (Syracuse University Press, 2025), her work has also been reviewed in The New York Times, The New Yorker, Art Criticism, and The Huffington Post. Full Press & Publications list here

Verwer is the recipient of the 2024 Fellowship Grant from the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture.

Full CV here.

Her latest body of work, LIVING WATERS, comprises two interconnected projects:

Turning the Tide, Art in the Wake of Plastic and Possibility, which explores the relationship between nature and human impact, integrating video and cultural texts to prompt reflection on environmental responsibility.

LIVING WATERS – IMMERSIONS: Where Tradition Meets Transformation, which reimagines ritual and heritage through contemporary media and symbolic storytelling.

Upcoming solo exhibitions in 2026 will take place in New York City, Living Waters, at The Interfaith Center, and Hartford, CT: Turning the Tide: Art in the Wake of Plastic and Possibility, at the Hartford International University.

Verwer has been at the forefront of groundbreaking and nationally recognized initiatives to engage artists and the public with Jewish contemporary art and heritage. As the Founding Director of the Jewish Art Salon she leads the largest global Jewish contemporary visual arts non-profit, where she produced over 70 exhibitions and art events so far.

Verwer holds a master’s degree in fine art from the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, Netherlands. You can find her work at yonaverwer.com and instagram.com/yona_verwer

Artist statement

LIVING WATERS - The Turning Tide

Art in the Wake of Plastic and Possibility

The Turning Tide is a visual exploration of plastic pollution in the oceans, but it is also a meditation on healing, hope, and human responsibility.

These principles resonate through each painting: the tension between destruction and regeneration, the interplay of synthetic and natural forms, the suggestion that even damaged waters can still be renewed..

The Turning Tide leans into hope; drawing from a tradition that insists even small acts of repair matter, that we are all stewards of creation, and that a turning point is always possible. 

More info: https://www.yonaverwer.net/living-waters

LIVING WATERS - IMMERSIONS / Book of Yona

As a New York City–based artist named Yona (Jonah), and as someone who immigrated from Europe, I create work that reimagines the ancient prophet’s story through the lens of personal mythology, cultural transition, and urban dislocation. My paintings explore the tension between flight and return, isolation and transformation—universal themes that resonate more sharply when you’ve crossed an ocean and reshaped your life.

By weaving sacred narrative with everyday environments, I seek to locate the mythic within the mundane—and find new meaning in an old name.

More info: https://www.yonaverwer.net/book-of-yona-statement