Winter cat (2020) Painting by Maria Aristova

My painting is a way to reveal my view of the world as well as my sense of beauty. While studying at the Academy of Arts, I was mostly interested in painting portraits and nudes, representing skin tones and textures of draperies. However, I was always interested in adding styling elements to my work, simplifying something and playing on the arrangement of coloured or black spots. I studied at the department of theatre painting, so in my work I tend to combine a theatrical composition with realistic images of people. I am mostly inspired by female images, although I sometimes paint male and child portraits as well as still lifes. Speaking about still lifes, I am interested in combining real objects with abstract or decorative ones as well as sometimes inventing backgrounds.

I am currently working on a new series. My inspiration for this series is drawn from nature. The heroines of my paintings, created during quarantine period, personify the spring - awakening nature. The terrible virus made many citizens flee their homes and move to the country, including me. For the first time in my adult life, I had the opportunity to observe every day how nature awakens from sleep, how first tree leaves appear and flowers bloom. It is true that we hardly ever notice these natural phenomena in our everyday life. I believe that everyone can take advantage of any life situation, and I have to admit as an artist that last year respite opened my eyes to many things and inspired a series of works.

• Nationality: RUSSIA
• Date of birth : 1984
• Artistic domains: Works by professional artists,
• Groups: Professional Artist Russian Contemporary Artists