Liliya Muglia
Canada
I was born in Ukraine where I studied classical art in an academic setting from the age of nine. During my years in Lviv, Ukraine I obtained a master’s degree in pharmacy but after the Chernobyl explosion and subsequent collapse of the economy, I migrated to Canada where I requalified as a pharmacist at the University of Toronto. I also continued my studies at the Academy of Realist Art (ARA) and graduated in 2013.
Since 2008 and prior I’ve been actively participating in local shows and have been a member of KUMF Gallery of Toronto, Ontario. Throughout difficult pandemic years I’ve been participating in on-line virtual shows and my work was featured in Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine throughout 2020 – 2021.
2021 I became a winner of the Best in a Show Portrait Award by Canadian Portrait Society. My work is currently on display in Ukrainian Consulate of Canada. As a Canadian Ukrainian artist, I actively support the origin and development of my culture and donate 50% of my commissions and sales of originals and prints to Humanitarian Aid of Victims of Ukrainian war.
Today I have left the field of pharmacy and am a full-time artist with my studio located in Toronto, Canada. As a classically trained artist, I use the realism of my work to support my imaginative vision of the world which comes from my personal life experience, my culture as being Ukranian-born artist and future expectations of cultural contribution into a world's fine arts treasure house.
I typically paint in oils and develop themes based on extensive drawings, value and colour studies creating a narrative much as a writer who writes a novel with main and supportive characters and frequent changes of composition and design schemes. I do preliminary studies in charcoal, conte and red chalk with real models and create subjects from different perspectives. In these studies, I use different sceneries, clothing, accessories, and attributes as part of a foundation for the final execution of my work.
* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 16th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.
