Plein-Air
Plein-air painting trips became a true school of life and art for me.
Traveling in my trusty Toyota - from Crimea to Rome - I painted in the open air, stayed in unfamiliar towns, and captured the light, mood, and colors of each horizon. It was during these journeys that the most honest and vivid works were born - inspired by the road, adventure, and real connection with people and nature.
My plein air Toyota — the car that survived Crimea, Rome, and the full brass band — was always packed in the back with canvases and paints.
Each day I’d drive from one town to another, painting along the way. At night, I’d sleep either in random apartments or right in the car — with adventures or without, but always with warmth. People welcomed me, helped, offered food, and often commissioned artworks. Then I’d move on. The most honest paintings were born from those journeys.
"The Shores of Crimea," oil on canvas, 40×75 cm, 2009
This piece was painted from the deck of a ferry traveling from Odesa to Poti, on my way to Georgia. After breakfast in the ship’s restaurant, I went up on deck and saw land on the horizon - it was Crimea, visible off the port side. I quickly set up my easel and, for the next hour and a half - while the peninsula was still in view -I captured the mood, the air, the state of that distant world. Far out at sea, the air is crystal clear, the colors sharp, concentrated, and deep.
This painting was later exhibited at the Art Fine Ukraine festival in the Ukrainian House in Kyiv in 2010, represented by Victory Gardens Gallery, Odesa.