Spring in Famagusta Print

My work explores issues of time, life, and memory. Through painting I channel life experiences to create works of art. With influences as diverse as J.M.W.Turner (1775-1851) ‘and the Greek mythology, my creations become pathways for understanding the connections we share as humans with each other and with the natural world that surrounds us now and in the past. I grew up in a house by the sea in Famagusta, Cyprus, a home I lost in the trauma of war, and although I didn’t set out to produce art about anything specific, as my portfolio developed over the years I realised that the pleasure and energy I was getting from painting was when I focused on water, boats, beaches, marinas, wet stones and rocks, subjects emanating from childhood memories of my early life by the sea. My working process and challenges: I create paintings with many textures, robust energy and a playful style. Creating in strong tonal variations, I constantly challenge my own talent by trying to experiment with subject matters and techniques for new creative effects. I prefer to work in oils mostly because of its amazing lifelike warm colours. My personal challenge is to create scenes that convey a personal feeling ‘presenting the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it for emotional effect with the aim to evoke moods’ as was the trait for this great art movement known as ‘expressionism’. When I paint sea shores for instance, I try to convey the feeling of being there on that beach where I grew up, where I can still feel my toes walking on the warm sand and where sometimes the wind brushes my face as I walk against it. My style and compositions show the natural forms of a real world in a semi abstract, expressionistic way. My work has been described as “a reflection and celebration of life in a symbolic manner.”