Olha Avrina is not just an artist, she is a bright, purposeful person for whom art is a way of learning about herself and the world. She is open to criticism, dreams of an exhibition and strives for constant development. Today we will learn more about her creative path, her dreams and what inspires her to create beautiful paintings
What inspired you to start painting and how did this hobby become your passion?
It is difficult for me to put into words what exactly inspired me to paint, because I have never thought about it deeply.
As a child, when my mother became interested in religion, our house was filled with icons. In my spare moments I liked to redraw them. In those days there were no colouring books or materials available, but my hobby was not supported. My parents were busy and could not take me to classes. I loved to sculpt, draw, create crafts, but we didn’t have the means to do so. So my childhood passion for painting remained unrealised.
Everything changed about five years ago. I was invited to a master class in oil painting. Words cannot describe how much I enjoyed it! Four hours flew by like a blink of an eye, it was as if I dissolved into creativity. I felt such a burst of positivity and energy, as if I had discharged everything that had accumulated inside.
After the first class I realised that I couldn’t live without it, as if a poison had been injected under my skin, causing addiction. These were the feelings that painting awakened in me.
What was your first painting and how did you feel when you completed it?
My first painting… It was born at a masterclass I was given. At the time, it seemed to me to be the height of perfection, a true masterpiece. Looking back on it now, I realise that it was very presumptuous. It was a cityscape: a couple under an umbrella, walking in the rain. The work was done in the Impressionist style, with blurred silhouettes.
Impressionism was my first step into the world of painting. No detailing, just abstract strokes through which I could barely guess familiar images. That’s how it all began.
Does other art such as music, literature or film influence your work? Which artists have had the greatest influence on your work?
I can’t say that other art forms have a direct influence, but indirectly they always influence through the mood evoked by music, literature or films. Sometimes all it takes is one song to instantly change the mood and the desire to create. Colour seems to arise by itself in response to music or film. Also, when I work, I often paint several canvases at the same time, and sometimes I start something completely new that I hadn’t planned.
My fascination with art began in childhood. My parents lived modestly, but we had an incredibly beautiful and expensive book about Leonardo da Vinci with impeccable reproductions and detailed descriptions. I loved looking at it and it seemed like something cosmic to me. It had an impact on me because I saw paintings that I couldn’t see in person as we couldn’t afford trips to museums.
What aspects of your life and personality do you think are reflected in your work? What role does colour play in your paintings?
My palette of colours directly depends on my mood, on my emotional state. I still can’t understand what is primary: whether the final result of the painting affects me, or whether the process of creation broadens my horizons and makes me more mature. In any emotional state I find solace in painting, and naturally this is reflected in my colour palette.
When my father died, my paintings were imbued with sombre tones. I painted a deep blue sea, and for three months I added darker shades every day: black, dark brown, dark green. The canvas showed a rusty porthole with sweat, as if from an aeroplane crash.
But when I feel joy, it is inevitably reflected in bright, rich colours. I am currently working on a field of poppies, where reds and greens predominate and the sky is coloured in dawn hues. Sometimes it seems to me that these works were created by completely different people.
Drawing is my favourite pastime. Events in the world, especially the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, keep me busy. At such times, I prefer to get up and paint. I can spend six or seven hours at the canvas, forgetting everything.
I love impressionism, but lately I’m more and more attracted to detail. It helps me understand myself better. I can paint to order, but only if the work makes me genuinely sympathetic. I can’t just mechanically redraw a picture, I need to love it.
In general, I am a cheerful and creative person, and painting helps me to develop, to understand and perceive life better, to maintain emotional balance. Painting helps me to live, and, I think, not only me.
What role do you think art plays in people's lives?
I can say about myself: it either creates a mood or destroys it. It depends on the perception of art, which is very subjective. It can inspire or devastate. But in general, art shapes people’s inner world, influences their formation. Many people are healed through art. I know those who, in difficult moments, visit museums to draw on the energy and thoughts of artists. It is inspiring and empowering.
Art gives a person energy if it suits them. But there are works that can cause sadness, apathy or depression. That is why I believe that art can both revitalise a person and destroy him for a while.
Do you have any rituals or habits that help you in the process of making paintings?
I don’t have any special rituals or habits that help me get in the mood for the creative process. No paw paws, candles, dimmed lights or anything like that. Unfortunately or fortunately, my creativity is very much dependent on my mood. And mood, in turn, can depend on the music, on the people around me, on whether everything is okay or vice versa. From emotions, from my inner state, from falling in love, from the fact that someone liked what I did. All this gives me a lot of energy, positive energy, to create something new, to continue or complete a work.
That’s why I don’t have rituals, but I can listen to music in parallel. And this music is so diverse that I cannot even give specific examples. It can be classical, rock, rap – anything. My inner state determines what I’m going to write, and that determines what subject I choose for the painting
Tell us about your experience of studying in Florence. How did it influence your art?
It was a moment when, painting in the Impressionist style, I suddenly wanted detail. Having seen a photograph, I wanted to convey reality, to reproduce beauty with maximum precision: shapes, sizes, proportions, slopes. Plus, I wanted to learn something new.
In Italy, I learned about the wonderful Florentine drawing schools and went to one of them, ‘Apollo’ (named after the teacher). It was a completely different art form. Italian painting, known all over the world, has distinctive colours. There I drew for the first time with pencil on canvas and then with colours. I used to start straight away with oil underpainting, without pencil.
In Florence I learnt about detail, the ruler, the circles. It was a revolution in the way I thought about painting. I painted lemons, a street with moving people and buildings, learnt how to depict architecture, which I had not been able to do before.
Of course, I plan to continue my studies. It’s incredibly exciting! Even now, when I talk about it, my pulse races. The school in Florence is something amazing! I recommend everyone to try it, even those who have never painted. It’s a cosmic experience!
What achievements in your career do you consider the most significant and why? What international competitions have you participated in?
Perhaps the best praise and achievement for me was when friends came round with acquaintances whom I was seeing for the first time. When they saw my painting, they immediately wanted to buy it. For me it was unexpected, I even offered to give it as a gift. But they insisted, put an impressive sum on the table and took the painting. It still adorns their house, and later they asked me to paint a second one so that they would look like a couple. That was the biggest achievement for me: when strangers saw my work and wanted to buy it.
As far as contests go, entering Golden Time Talent was an accident. I saw an advert on Facebook and, driven by some reckless courage, decided to submit my work. To my surprise, out of the three paintings submitted, one won first place and the other two took third place. It was incredibly gratifying and will be remembered for the rest of my life.
Otherwise, I never participated in competitions and treated painting as a part of my life that I wanted to share. The fact that my work could be liked by others was an eye-opener for me.
You said that it was a discovery for you that people like your work. Do you plan to continue showing your works to the public? Do you have a dream connected with your art? What goals do you set for the near future?
Yes, it was incredibly gratifying to realise that my work resonates with people. After all, like any artist, I can’t always assess my work objectively. A long immersion in the process seems to ‘blur’ the eye, and it is difficult to realise how good a picture is from a technical point of view. So when someone from the outside expresses their admiration, it becomes a powerful incentive for further creativity.
I have a grandiose goal of organising my own exhibition. I am still searching for my unique style and maybe it is drawing that helps me to understand myself better. I want to learn from teachers of different nationalities to get to know a variety of techniques and create something of my own.
The Golden Time Talent competition inspires me a lot. I dream to win the Grand Prix, because the evaluation of experts from all over the world is a great recognition. I want to develop, co-operate with you and visit London to see this large-scale event live.
My goals are ambitious: I want to go to the Florence School for a year’s course to master the technique of portraiture. But I also admire the variety of styles, from impressionism to classical. I want any technique to be easy for me, so that I can express my creative impulses freely. After all, I am essentially self-taught, and I need competent advice and recommendations.
And, of course, my main dream is to organise my own solo exhibition.
Have you faced criticism of your work? How do you deal with it and how does it affect your work?
I treat criticism calmly and with understanding, especially criticism that is substantive, expressed with respect and gratitude. After all, the sincere opinion of experts is a priceless gift. However, I am also aware of the subjectivity of art perception. What I like, others may not like, and vice versa. Portraits, still lifes, landscapes – everyone finds something different in art. Modern art, for example, can be both admired and completely rejected.
So I take criticism as an outsider’s view, always ready to listen. I am interested in how people react to my work, what they think. And if they can give competent advice, that’s just great!
Criticism doesn’t upset me or demotivate me. On the contrary, it makes me stronger. It encourages me to improve myself, to want to surpass myself. I’m not competing with other artists, I’m trying to beat myself, to become better.
This is the most important thing for me.
What advice could you give to aspiring artists?
