We are holding a quick-fire interview, with rapid questions and answers from our artists, so that we can get to know them better.

Meet artist, painter, and graphic artist Daria Eliseeva. She graduated from the I. D. Shadr Yekaterinburg Art College with a degree in Painting and from the Ural State University of Architecture and Art with a degree in Monumental and Decorative Art. Since 2004, she has taken part in national, regional, group, and city exhibitions and festivals. She has held five solo exhibitions. In 2017, she had a solo exhibition at the Yekaterinburg Museum of Fine Arts. Her works are held in private collections in the United States, Switzerland, and Russia.

Let’s begin! Daria Eliseeva’s answers:

My favourite colour... all of them. Absolutely every colour is my favourite.

My favourite shape... my favourite shape is the circle. It is perfect.

I cannot work when... I cannot work in the company of like-minded people, let alone those who are not. Solitude in measured doses is the very best condition for working.

I am inspired by... I am inspired by the world around me in all its aspects: people and cities, colours and textures, scents and sounds. Travel. Nature. The air is steeped in inspiration; you simply have to breathe it in more deeply.

In my paintings... my paintings often contain something entirely different from what the viewer feels—and that is what interests me most.

My studio... I work outside the city. Nature is the ideal place to listen to oneself.

My tools... my favourite tools are as old as time! Bristle brushes, palette knives, and canvas. They give me a powerful sense of being part of something... a kind of everyday magic.

If I were not an artist... as a child, I also contemplated becoming a magician or a sour-cream packer. I found it mesmerising to watch the thick white substance fill empty jars. In a way, it is all coming true :).

You can view and purchase works by Daria Eliseeva here.