Cute dog Shunya (2019) Painting by Tetiana Ilina

I am a full time artist based in Kyiv, Ukraine. Oil painting is my passion and greatest love.

I'm introvert by nature and always have enjoyed solitude with canvas and oil at home and not in the class with other students. Every time when I studied the basics of something new I practiced alone in my room. I could paint a picture for days choosing the thinnest brush. However nothing has really changed too much. Now I am 26 and with the same zeal and a touch of madness I am working on new paintings, often making a mess on myself and surrounding objects in oil. I immerse myself completely in the process.

For the most part, I learned oil painting by myself by trial and error. And I love art with all my heart and I can't imagine my life without it. When I finish work on a painting, everything can serve as inspiration for the next one. It can be sky after a thunderstorm, sea waves, immersed in the green mountains, people and animals.

In work I prefer to use cotton or linen canvas stretched on a frame and oil paints. I always opened for new commissions and ideas and have no restrictions on the size and shape of the work surface.

What am I dreaming of? I really want to find people in our great beautiful world who are not indifferent to art, who can understand and feel my paintings. I believe that art heals, gives joy, tranquility and peace. That is the message that my artwork carries. It is a real joy for me when a person who looks at my painting begins to smile. Isn't that the point? You create because you cannot do otherwise.

• Nationality: UKRAINE
• Date of birth : 1993
• Artistic domains:
• Groups: Ukrainian Contemporary Artists