About
Cath Simard is a Canadian photographer and digital artist known for her surreal landscape composites, blending reality and imagination to create dreamlike interpretations of the natural world. Her distinctive aesthetic, often characterized by cold tones, dramatic mountain landscapes, and ethereal light, has earned her international recognition.
A self-professed introvert, Cath finds her greatest inspiration in remote wilderness, where solitude, physical endurance, and creative freedom shape her artistic vision.
To create a single artwork, she has walked over 250 kilometres, spent 18 consecutive days in the mountains, and photographed at elevations exceeding 5,900 metres. Her meticulous creative process can take hundreds of hours, resulting in only a handful of new artworks each year.
An early adopter of NFTs, Cath explored blockchain technology as a new way to connect art and ownership.
Her practice is now primarily focused on collectible fine art prints, commissioned artworks, and creative collaborations with brands that share her passion for exploration, nature, and storytelling.
‘‘I don’t capture what my eyes see, I capture what my mind imagines.’’
THE ARTISTIC PROCESS: BETWEEN REALITY AND IMAGINATION
Cath Simard's artistic practice exists somewhere between photography and imagination. Her intricate landscape composites are created by collecting fragments of reality during her expeditions and bringing them together into a singular, carefully constructed vision.
Her distinctive approach developed organically throughout her photography journey. What began as a desire to document the beautiful places she explored gradually evolved into something more personal and imaginative. Rather than limiting herself to what could be captured in a single photograph, Cath began experimenting with combining different elements, perspectives, and moments in time. She discovered that this process allowed her to create images that more accurately reflected how she experienced and remembered a place, rather than simply how it appeared.
Over the years, this approach evolved into a highly meticulous creative process, blending technical precision with artistic freedom. Her compositions can involve anywhere from a few photographs to more than twenty individual elements, sometimes captured across different days, seasons, or expeditions.
Solitude and physical endurance are central to her practice. Through long days of hiking, climbing, and camping in remote wilderness, Cath often enters a deep creative flow state where the distractions of everyday life disappear. Depending on the conditions and her connection to a particular location, she may spend days exploring without capturing a single photograph.
She approaches landscapes as collections of individual elements, carefully observing light, textures, shapes, and atmospheric conditions. Sometimes she returns to the same location multiple times to capture a specific element under the right conditions.
"I collect little fragments of reality to make it my own."
After an expedition, Cath often sets her photographs aside for months or even years. This distance allows her to revisit the experience with fresh eyes, reconnect with the emotions she felt in the mountains, and gradually transform those memories into a finished artwork.
Some compositions require over a hundred hours of editing, and her commitment to this process means she releases only a handful of new artworks each year.
FROM FASHION TO THE MOUNTAINS: A STORY OF RISK AND TRANSFORMATION
Scouted by a modelling agency at the age of 15, Cath spent nearly a decade working in fashion, including several years as a stylist and art director.
In 2014, she made a radical change, leaving behind her career, selling her possessions, and purchasing a one-way ticket to Australia, where she began working on a banana farm.
With little money and a growing desire for exploration, she spent her free time travelling and documenting her adventures with an iPhone. Her early photographs eventually attracted the attention of a brand, leading to her first photography collaboration and the purchase of her first camera.
A formative solo journey through Indonesia, Hawaii, and Western Canada further deepened her connection to photography and the outdoors. In 2016, she returned to Canada, determined to pursue a life centred around exploration and artistic creation.
What followed was years of travelling, hiking, and living out of her vehicle while developing her skills in some of the world's most remote landscapes.
Over time, her passion for the mountains evolved beyond hiking and trekking into more demanding alpine environments and technical mountaineering. These experiences continue to push her physical and creative boundaries, becoming an increasingly important part of both her artistic practice and personal journey.
NFTs: INNOVATION, OWNERSHIP AND ARTISTIC EXPERIMENTATION
An early adopter and influential figure in the NFT photography movement, Cath explored blockchain technology as a way to challenge traditional models of artistic ownership, connect directly with collectors, and experiment with new forms of creative expression.
In 2021, she made headlines with #freehawaiiphoto, an initiative inspired by the widespread unauthorized use of one of her photographs. After releasing the image's usage rights to the public, she sold its associated NFT to collector @gmoneyNFT for 100 ETH (approximately $300,000 USD), sparking international conversations about photography, copyright, and digital ownership.
She continued experimenting with the medium through projects such as Le Départ, an NFT accompanied by a personalized five-day experience in the Canadian Rockies, and Continuum, which was auctioned at Sotheby's in 2022. Her involvement also extended to collaborative projects such as Metascapes and FOTO Vault.
Today, Cath's practice is primarily focused on physical fine art prints, commissioned artworks, and creative collaborations. While NFTs are no longer central to her work, she continues to explore blockchain technology selectively, particularly as a means of authenticating and establishing provenance for unique physical artworks, including her one-of-one piece Catacomb.
BEYOND THE ART: EXPLORATION AND CREATIVE PARTNERSHIPS
Beyond her fine art practice, Cath has spent years sharing her passion for wilderness and exploration through photography workshops, expeditions, and creative partnerships.
She has collaborated with brands and organizations in the photography, outdoor, and travel industries. Her work has also been featured in publications including DPReview, Outdoor Photography Magazine, and Open Skies Magazine.
Her creative interests increasingly extend into filmmaking and visual storytelling, documenting the physical and emotional challenges of exploring remote mountain environments. Her short documentary Prémonition, filmed during a technical mountaineering ascent in Peru, reflects this evolution.
A self-professed introvert, Cath feels most at home in wild places, where solitude, movement, and exploration allow her to reconnect with herself and her creative vision.
Born in Québec, Canada, in 1989, she is based in Calgary, Alberta, near the Canadian Rocky Mountains.