Winter sunset

The painting is of a Russian forest in winter at sunset. The frame is from carved wood

Born in Russia in 1961, Irina won entry to art college, spending four years there. "We had to study all different subjects, like drawing, painting, composition, advertising, calligraphy, fonts, art history, sculpture and anatomy!" After graduation she found work that used her art skills, but the political and economic upheavals associated with the death of the USSR meant she had to pack her paintbrushes away for many years

She moved to Australia in 1999. "For me Australia is very beautiful, but I never could say what time of the year it was or what month it was: April or October." A growing nostalgia for Russia persuaded her to unpack her paintbrushes, and she started painting Russian landscapes, in their various seasons, from memory.

."I have painted a couple of pictures from my childhood: the dying villages, where my grandmother lived. I hope it would be a good memory for my daughter and younger generation. Then I painted a few Australian landscapes and fantasy pictures. I've had my first exibition in 2004 and sold most of them. I am enjoying my paintings and all my Russian paintings come from my soul."