Born in Katowice, in Poland, Ania displayed a talent for art in early childhood. From the age of 10, she began to attend additional art classes and received tutoring from a number of well-established Polish artists. At 13, she received her first oil paints from her father and has worked in the medium for over 30 years now. She studied at Silesia University in Cieszyn, Poland, and obtained her art diploma in 2003 in the studio of Tadeusz Rus.
Ania works mainly on canvas in oil and likes to experiment with colours and shapes often creating the pictures from her imagination. Since moving to London in 2005, Ania’s paintings have been exhibited in numerous solo and joint exhibitions. Her work is on display with multiple galleries throughout the UK and can be found in the homes of collectors across the country. She had a great pleasure to exhibit with the Society of Women Artists at the Mall Galleries in London and with Chelsea Art Society at Chelsea Old Town Hall and she is frequently represented at the Affordable Art Fair and Fresh Art Fair.
Statement:
Painting gives me incredible freedom to interpret the world I see and feel. I take an object or a memory that inspires me and shape it onto a canvas with my emotions. Everything is organic, imperfect, no straight lines or right angles, even the edge of the table is wavy and bumpy. I love this natural order with no rules inspired by tree branches, meandering of rivers or oddly shaped fruits and flowers.
Mixing oil paints on a pallet is therapeutic and exciting, because you can’t really tell what you might discover next. It could be a colour or a shade you have never seen before. I believe that colours have healing powers as I am instinctively drawn to a specific one or a combination, depending on my state of being.
I like to experiment with the diverse possibilities of paint and other mediums. Working impasto with a pallet knife and scumbling – spreading the paint in such a way that the paint layer underneath shows through in rough, irregular patches or applying several layers and scratching or scraping the surface. Occasionally, I add collage or scribble with pencils or Posca pens.
Most of the time I paint from memory to capture the essence of subject rather than a visual snapshot representation. Through stylised elements, textures and patterns I try to show the most delicate and elusive characteristics of a specific way of experiencing and expressing the world.
By portraying blissful but fleeting moments I want to express the importance of finding time to be still in our hectic lives and to appreciate what is real and tangible. The smell of the flowers, the sweet taste of the fruit or the beauty of the sun rays reflecting in the glass jar, reminds us of what life is all about. Chasing your dreams may be fun, but only in the present moment is when miracles happen.
