Kat Vandal
Mixed media artist based in London
I transform preloved toys and childhood nostalgia into happy fine art as a rebellion against adulthood (and the seriousness of the art world)
Using ball-pit balls, figurines, teddies and balloons, I combine the art of upcycling with playfulness and emotional resonance. My work is layered both figuratively and literally, between sculpture and painting.
I exhibit and ship worldwide. Currently represented by The Gallery of Things in Berlin and Chrom'Art Management in Menton (France), I am always looking for opportunities to exhibit my art in London and the rest of the world.
My inspiration
My practice stems from a deep obsession with primary childhood, which I see as the most wholesome period of our lives, whether it’s ours or our children’s. I’m drawn to innocence, wonder, simplicity, unconditional love, and the freedom to be yourself without worrying about what others think. At the same time, I’m deeply nostalgic, constantly haunted by time and the anxiety of happy moments fading.
Motherhood gave me a second doorway into childhood, and I feel the ache of that doorway slowly closing. With that comes the fear of becoming surrounded by adults only, trapped in a life where nobody believes in magic, and nobody wants to play. My practice is how I keep that doorway open. I play to keep my inner happy child alive.
In a way, this work is my therapy, and I hope it can bring peace and joy to others too.
I create art from toys because they are physical symbols of childhood’s smallest joys. And I believe that remembering small moments of joy is choosing happiness. But I also know first-hand, that happy memories can be bittersweet depending on the mood we’re in.
That’s why I choose to remain playful, to transform melancholy into happy nostalgia. I use uplifting colours and cheerful symbols to create an immediate reaction, a first smile, almost like a dopamine rush. Then, once the viewer is softened into that brighter place, the work can open into something deeper: a connection that invites them to dig into their own memories.
In my execution, childhood and adulthood meet as a deliberate duality. My artworks represent childhood through an adult lens: joyful colours and playful chaos, sharpened with edge and emotion. My art is not for kids (or not just) but for the kid trapped in adulthood.
My first influences were Vasarely, Delaunay and Kandinsky, who showed me as a child that art could be fun and experimental through colour and repeated shapes, rather than technical perfection or intimidating realism. Later, Street Art and Pop Art, especially Keith Haring and Andy Warhol, added attitude, directness, and cultural charge, sharpening my work into something punchier and more refined.
My palette mirrors this tension: yellows, pinks, and rainbow brights anchored by black contour, elevated by glitter, silver, and gold.
But this visual language isn’t just decorative for me, it’s the emotional delivery system.
I want my artworks to live in people’s homes like emotional anchors: not just reminders of one moment (like a photograph), but a sensorial keepsake of the childhood spirit itself, something that stays, even when childhood has left the house.
In their words...
"Kat Vandal wants to "transfer positivity" with her Happy Art which is all about upcycling nostalgia and uplifting others. She's realised that the toys of her childhood and those from her son's early years inspire smiles and optimism by bringing back good memories. Kat believes that for most of us there was joyful escape through imaginative playing with toys."
DANIEL SITWELL, journalist
"Kat Vandal blends joyful rebellion with coded nostalgia, turning lived experience into a high-impact visual language. Her work moves with rhythm, attitude, and depth — a convergence of street sensibility and gallery power. She codes culture, not just comments on it.Her fluency in pop iconography transforms familiar visuals into new symbols of identity and play. Her palette carries instant emotional weight. She's anti-hype but hyper-strategic, aligned with communities and collectors who value intention over trends. Her style is unique, defensible, and deeply resonant."
SIMON WILLIAMS, collector
"Kat vandal's artworks not only rekindle the warmth of childhood but also emphasise the beauty of sustainability, finding creative purpose in what might otherwise have been discarded. Her process brings fresh life into childhood memories, preserving them vividly bold and in an exciting different way"
ALEXANDRA MANN, owner of The Gallery of Things, Berlin
