Art has been always a very important element in my life. As a young child I was amazed by the Renaissance masters artwork. Growing up I tried to reproduce part of that work and that gave me the courage to go further. I followed three years art school in my hometown, ending with a major in Sculpture. Still amazed by the volume and shapes of any subject matter, and challenged to recreate it on a two-dimensional surface, I continued to pursue painting and drawing.
I have always felt a special connection with textural surfaces and the human figure. The beauty and strength in human feagures is a preferred subject in my work.
Every time I work into a new piece I feel energetic and passionate. Every step is filled with new ideas and images that I want to capture, depict and share. The process of creating is what is important to me, the energy and feeling in those moments, the process is what breathes life.
With my work I try to share with the viewer the feeling that the subject inspired in me. I find my inspiration in immediate surroundings, and I hope that my work will lead the viewer to see the beauty that I see. First impressions are everything. My realistic artwork is not a copy of nature; it is my own representation of it. I see the beauty surrounding me that some people fail to notice.I love taking photographs and some of them are good references for future paintings.
Vibrancy, color and emotion, the potential is there to add my unique and personal touch and bring to life a photograph that may only have been a flat and lifeless representation of reality. The artist is essentially changing reality, through his or her own philosophy and skills, learned over time through mistakes and hard work.
I always strive to give the viewer a complete sensory experience. Most often my depictions of those experiences are simply my way of saying: You should see what I saw. My work is based on feelings about the subject seen.
I am like a little child who's exploring the world for the first time, everything surrounding me it is interesting and new, and every day brings something new I can include in my work.
Leyla Munteanu joined Pixels.com Licensing on April 15th, 2007.
