Irene Valincius's paintings and monotypes resemble and sometimes depict such evanescent phenomena as flames, light on water, smoke, and clouds.

In her paintings, veils of brilliant color and wax build complex layers of translucency that evoke an air of mystery and of spiritual questioning.

Her work has been broadly influential in this region since the early 1990s and is included in the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park in Lincoln, Massachusetts, and the Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, among others.