How did you get into painting?
When I was in Kyiv, I drew at home. I drew on the windows when I was on maternity leave. And then I went further, I painted cities, I started painting trees. And I exhibited my work. With the war, I came to France. And I continue to paint. Because it's part of me. Because it's about bringing a little Ukrainian culture, because it helps us not to forget that Ukraine exists and that there is a war in our country.
Did leaving Ukraine change your painting?
I left Ukraine, leaving behind people I love to come here. It wasn't supposed to last very long because we thought the war would end quickly. And I fell in love here. It changed my painting in two ways. There's more softness and more immediacy. In the colors, the lighting. And more generally, I would also say that my paintings give off a more intense energy. More immediate. More useful. You can't wait, you can't put anything off. Seeing your house hit by a missile makes the uncertainty of tomorrow more real. We can't relive the past, we don't know what tomorrow will bring. We have to live today.
Your works are populated with trees. Is that a vital essence?
I feel the energy of trees. Each tree is unique if you consider it an individual within a species. It has its strength, its energy, its very robust roots, its branches reaching towards the sky. Each tree has its own story, each person has their own tree of life.
What is your tree of life?
For me, the tree is the walnut tree under which I used to swing when I was little. A walnut tree like the one growing by the roadside leading into the village where I now live. Every day, I observe its growth, I watch for its leaves to appear, I observe the birds that perch on its branches. They are two walnut trees that speak to each other, each with its own story. It gives me hope, emotions, and a lot of energy. To me, who feels like an uprooted tree.
Trees Always and Warm Colors Often
I want to offer the viewer of the painting a little warmth, a little gentleness. We should appreciate life and each day that makes it up, and try to give the world as much as we can. If someone can help others, by making music, by helping others, they should do it. Let everyone bring a part of what is most beautiful within them. By painting, I try to give hope, to give something beautiful and good to make people a little happier. I don't paint when I'm sad, when I feel like crying.
What direction do you want to take your painting?
To continue painting trees. To exhibit my paintings even more. Next April, it will be in Pau, at the Danser sous la plume bookstore, opposite the castle. I'd also like to do Paris.
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