Congratulations to Valeria Ocean for earning her place as a Winner in the Monthly Art Award May 2024 Edition!

Who are you?

Hi, my name is Valeria Ocean, I was born in Russia, I’m 29, and I'm living in Serbia now. I'm a marine artist who paints close up seascapes.

I have been working as a tattoo artist for several years since 2018. I have always taken this job as a creative one, not just as a craft or making similar tattoos from Pinterest. I worked hard to improve my painting skills, and in search of new experiences, I tried oils for the first time in 2019. I fell in love with the process, but painting on canvas was a kind of hobby during all that time. I never thought I would be able to become an artist. It seemed so far from the ordinary girl who didn’t have any art education.

I started to take my art career seriously just 2 years ago, at which time I was living in Antalya, Turkey. I was greatly inspired by nature and the Mediterranean Sea.

I have always loved the sea; water excites me with its ever-changing nature and gorgeous motion. This passion has been with me for a long time. When I accidentally began a new chapter of my life on the sea coast, it boosted my inspiration and changed my relationship with my art career. And here I am!

What inspired you to utilize painting as a medium?

I think nothing can catch sea vibes as good as oil on canvas. For sure, I just can take a photo but it doesn’t look alive to me till I transfer my experience into canvas. I desired to catch that special movement of water that appears as quick as disappears in the moment. And put a living soul in it.

How would you describe your ARTwork?

It's a portal to the place where many of us like to be: it’s water. Inspiring, calming, healing. It’s a form of meditation. A moment to calm down.

Can you discuss the inspiration and thought process behind your finalist work?

Sure. While I was living at the sea coast, I had the opportunity to watch the sea daily. It gave me a huge boost in my painting skills. I remember that day I was shooting waves, they were especially wonderful that day because of the weather conditions. Wind wasn’t too strong, the sun wasn’t too bright. Just a few people were at the beach, and I had some moments to take good photos and watch water motion calmly and carefully.

However, the reference was waiting to be painted for 8 months. For this period I've already moved to Serbia and created this wave here. It was my first attempt to paint a triptych. It was tricky because I painted each canvas step by step and didn't see the whole artwork in the process because it’s impossible to put 3 canvases in a row on my easel. But it was a nice experience.

Can you walk us through the technical steps of creating your finalist work?

This is my reference I shot in Turkey

Here are primed and toned canvases

The way I was painting, I put 2 canvases in a row and changed them from time to time

This is 1st layer

And here is about to finish, just need to add some highlights

Finished artwork at the exhibition

What do you hope to communicate to an audience with your work?

I express the point how important it is to save your inner peace whenever it is going on in your life. Grow “inner supports” in yourself carefully day by day. Taking care of yourself. And I’m convinced water helps us to keep us closer to this condition.

Can you discuss your biggest success since starting your artistic journey?

I suppose one of my biggest successes is raising my instagram account to 100k for 17 months. It was not luck. I’ve been working on it hard all the time. First 3 months I produced 2 reels per day (no exception, no days off) and hit my 10k followers, then I got tired and produced 1 reel a day during the year. For the last few months I have been creating 2-4 reels per week.

I’m convinced social networks are very important for artists nowadays, especially in the area where there's no art activity offline and it’s complicated to demonstrate art to those people who really appreciate it and are ready to support the artist.

Can you share with us the best piece of advice you have received so far?

Regularity is the key. Whatever you do, you’ll get results for sure with the power of small but regular steps.

What projects are you working on currently?

Right now I’m working on a collaboration with a tattoo artist - we combine sea waves and calligraphy. Our plan is a wave in the middle surrounded by some important letters - I don’t know which letters they will be, it’s a surprise. Here is the photo of my process, I haven’t shown it to anyone yet. As soon as I finish my part, my colleague continues his lettering around the wave.

If everything goes fine, we will create more paintings like this and make an exhibition with this combination.

What is your dream project or piece you hope to accomplish?

For this year, I’d like to make an exhibition with big paintings (100+cm). I think big artwork affects the viewer much stronger than smaller ones. I’d like to call it “the ocean in Belgrade exists” and create a space with huge paintings, soft chairs and wave sounds, to turn it into a portal to the ocean in the very heart of the city.

As a winner, do you have any advice for artists who want to submit to awards, competitions, residencies, etc.?

Don’t be upset with rejections. They will always be in every artist’s way. They don’t make you worse as an artist or as a person. Just keep going.

Lastly, I like to ask everyone what advice they would give to their fellow artists, what is your advice?

I'd encourage you to be both active and persistent in your art career.

The artistic journey is a deeply personal and evolving process, but it all starts with your initiative. Especially when you're just beginning, every step you take fuels your growth and opens new possibilities. Keep pushing forward, don’t wait for luck or for anyone to offer or give you some opportunities.

To view more of Valeria Ocean

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