Lana Svirezheva — Paintings, Drawings
Paintings and drawings by Lana Svirezheva reflect both a passion
for classical painting methods and restless experimentation.
Portfolio
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Artist Statement
Deciding to be an artist at the age of four while looking up at Sodoma's St. Sebastian during my first visit to the Uffizzi Gallery, I have since pursued this path by working on portrait commissions, experimental paintings, as well as a rigorous sketchbook practice.
In line with my classical painting education at the Florence Academy of Art and my Masters by Research in Interdisciplinary Creative Practices, it is important to me to both combine craft and concept in my art.
When working from live models, spending hours together to document what it feels like to be alive, then and there, is a vital part of the artwork. It feels quite radical to be in each other's presence for so long, with all pretenses dropped due to the durational aspect of painting from life.
On the other hand, working from memory allows for a more ponderous process, wherein, with far from photographic recollections, I draw my way to figures I saw only briefly and/or long ago, by focusing on highly individual, expressive gestures as starting points: A homeless woman massaging her foot, a boy’s double chin and toothy grin, a whippet’s slender head slipping out of its collar.
Photo by: Michael Lüder, 2025
