First at all, I praise God for blessing my life, even if I look back, I was probably born in the wrong time and place. I’m talking about the beginning of communism in Eastern Europe. Like most teenagers, I grew up with a continuing accentuated non-conformity. I longed for political freedom and access to the Western World. My parents (stripped of their wealth by then oppressing government) encouraged and sponsored my studies of western art history as well as my fine art endeavor. Drawing and painting became my passions and after few years of doing illustration work for a major advertising company, still in my 20’s, I approached the field of religious art. From assisting on scaffolding to all the elaborate phases of studying and applying old master iconography and mural techniques, my own “Agony and Ecstasy” stands for posterity on the ceilings and domes of many cathedrals.
I had to learn about the art of painting icons, about the lives of the Christian saints, the way they were looking like and the most conventional way they were represented. I also learned about and practiced with old painting media like encaustic, egg-tempera, and of course, the classic fresco technique along with everything I could comprehend about Italian Renaissance art.
That’s when my passion for figurative art grew. At the same time I met my wife (my life-long love, friend, and business partner) and we had our first child. Because I’m a “Libra”, my wife was always there to adjust the weights so I could continue my life with a decent leveled balance. And speaking of Zodiacs, my wife was the one responsible for getting me to create our latest fine art endeavor (Zodiac-Art.com). Before that she helped me market all the decorative panels and limited editions created after I came to the United States (ClassicMurals.com). After several years of working exclusively in the mural decoration field and some affiliation with open edition print industries (Prints.com) I’ve been able to set up an art studio in one of the most beautiful locations on the West Coast, Laguna Beach California.
This is WHERE I work!
Lately I’m getting numerous portrait commissions from local people which subsequently are making my artwork more popular. I always draw before I paint. Sometime I just do a small thumbnail size sketch or, when I have a model sitting for me, I draw a complete detailed rendering. When I start drawing, first of at all I see every thing in black & white volumes. Once I gradually begin to distinguish grays, a whole stock of warm and cold temperatures come to invade my volumes. That’s my hardest time in drawing because I have to continue to represent temperatures over volumes using only a piece of charcoal or a pencil. Many times I employ a sepia or conté chalk along with conventional black & white on a slightly toned neutral colored paper.
I’ve been painting with many different mediums over the years but lately I am enjoying the smoothness of oil paste application. Italian opera and classic music are always on the background along with a quick gouache or tempera under painting.
This is HOW I paint!
Figurative is my favorite style, maybe because I love people more than anything else. When I paint a portrait I first concentrate on finding those beautiful lines connecting volumes with temperatures. Playing with lighting is of course, the major factor in creating the mood, shades and colors.
This is WHY I love painting portraits.
I enjoy exploring the connections between compositional elements in the challenge of capturing the special mood and feeling within the painting.
This is WHAT I do.