Elena Stogneva
As a child growing up in the Soviet Union/Russia, I’d go to drawing school after my normal school day ended and it was there I made my first friends and learned basic drawing rules. I also spent a lot of my childhood with my grandmother, who introduced me to the world of art. She began drawing when she was 40 and even though sadly she left us very early, she was and still is my biggest inspiration.
I grew up and got a degree in architecture, which has helped me understand perspective and geometry, especially when drawing street views or city objects - both favourite subjects of mine. I love drawing the places around me, seeing the everyday from a new angle. My series, “Walks around Hitchin”, includes all my favourite local spots. I believe you don’t need to go far to spark interest. If you look for it, everything around us can be beautiful and inspiring.
rt has always been my total escape, clearing my mind when I have any kind of problems. It’s my meditation and even when I’m tired, I’m happy to take myself away and draw. Over the years, I’ve experimented with many different drawing materials, doing quick pen sketches on holidays and in my spare time. It started turning from a hobby into something more when I realised everyday I need to draw, just like I need air to breathe. It was also a big moment when, aside from others telling me I was improving, I started seeing my own improvements too.
At the start of the pandemic, I joined a few online watercolour courses, learning more about colour palettes, mixing colours, composition and using the light to make really interesting pictures. I discovered watercolour improvisation, where instead of starting with sketches and using paint to cover areas, you make the paper really wet then let the paint meet the page and be free to flow and move. I fell in love with watercolour!
Since then, I’ve worked mainly in watercolour, selling more than 20 paintings. I can happily say that my hobby has become something bigger. I’d love to draw more city scenes and carry on painting the ordinary life I see around me everyday. Anything that touches me, that I have really special feelings for, from a vast field of poppies to a beautiful sunset. I like to think my pictures are my messengers and I’m happy if others feel that emotion when they look at them too. I’d love you to take a look at my website or get in touch to talk about commissions.
