Eleanor Croteau-LaBranche (b. 1990) creates painted-paper collages that explore themes of nature, transformation, and light. Her work draws inspiration from surrealism, spiritual experiences, and poetry.
Her intricate cut-paper collages are printed and layered to create a textured, iridescent surface that is both three-dimensional and luminous. While her subjects are primarily plant-based, she often incorporates symbols such as windows, seeds, and stars. These works explore sunlight-dappled, transitional spaces, reflecting on the immeasurable distance between life and death—and, more intriguingly, the passage from death into life again. Her pieces evoke themes of mystery, loss, and hope. As Croteau-LaBranche states, “I feel an access to something universal when painting these rising and illuminated plants, whom I wish to give a hum all their own.”
Originally from Southern New Hampshire, Croteau-LaBranche now lives in Manchester with her husband and energetic toddler. She holds a BFA from The New Hampshire Institute of Art and teaches Visual Art full-time to elementary school students in Exeter, NH.
CURRICULUM VITAE
Born 1990
Lives and works in Manchester, NH
Education
2012
BFA in Painting, New Hampshire Institute of Art, Manchester, NH
Selected Group Exhibitions
2025
Mentors and Masters, New England College, Manchester, NH
Here and There, See Saw Art Gallery, Manchester, NH
2024
Group Effort, See Saw Art Gallery, Manchester, NH
Paper Trail, Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery, Portsmouth, NH
Paper Works, Newburyport Art Association, Newburyport, MA
2023
Critical Mass, See Saw Art Gallery, Manchester, NH
Biennial One, Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery, Portsmouth, NH
2017
Open Studios, Art Up Front Street, Exeter, NH
2015
Practice What We Teach, Concord Hall, Manchester, NH
2013
30 Under 30, Exeter Town Hall, Exeter, NH
2012
Senior Show, Amherst Street Gallery, NH Institute of Art, Manchester, NH
Bibliography
2015
“Eleanor LaBranche – A Young New Hampshire Talent,” Weirs Times, Laconia, NH, March