Vinca Petersenlives in Ramsgate. At the age of 17, she moved from her childhood home in Kent to London, ostensibly to go to art school but actually living in squats, working as a model on the edgier fringes of the music and fashion scene, and getting swept up into the rave/free party scene that was blossoming across the UK in the late 1980s/early 1990s. As this scene became contained and commercialised, its more extreme elements were pushed back into the margins and Petersen left the UK to join her friends on the road across Europe, living in buses and vans and putting on free parties across the continent. Her work often explores the theme of collective joy, something she feels has too few outlets in contemporary life. When there are so few communal public spaces, gathering together to reclaim these spaces can itself be a courageous, radical act of defiance. Her alter-egos Art Nurse+ and Dr Joy bring joy and playfulness into staid and over-serious art events. She often creates spaces in which people can relax together, or ‘social sculptures’ in which people can enjoy interacting with each other. Her work has been shown at Tate Modern, Saatchi Gallery and the Turner Contemporary, and she is in the permanent collection at the V&A Museum and the Monsoon Collection.
As of June 2022