As Pablo Picasso once said “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” I’m sure most of us can relate to this quote. As a child growing up, I did what most children do – colour, draw, and paint with watercolours. I remember watching Bill Alexander on TV and was fascinated by how he could create a masterpiece in only 30 minutes. I always wondered and imagined what it would be like to be able to paint so masterfully.
After high school, life got in the way (as it so often tends to do), but my burning desire to “create” never left me. In September of 2002, I met Ed Martyniuk from Beautiful Freestyle Oil Painting, in between filming of his shows, at the Access TV Station. What a thrill it was to purchase a table-top easel (which he signed), along with paints and brushes from him, thus obtaining my ‘artistic license’. I give much gratitude to Ed for inspiring me to continue my journey that started back in childhood.
My passion for painting landscapes originates from growing up in rural Alberta and enjoying the many scenic views the land offers, including five National Parks - Banff, Elk Island, Jasper, Waterton Lakes and Wood Buffalo. As an artist, I feel truly blessed to live in an area that surrounds me with the beauty of mountains, prairies, parks, lakes and forests that provides me with several lifetimes of endless reference material.
Over the last 17 years, I’ve created many paintings – some of which I have sold to businesses and friends and others I have donated to charitable fundraisers.
To the Source, I say “Thank You” from the depths of my soul for endowing me with this wonderful gift and being able to call myself an artist.
About Terry
From an early age, I drew a lot; mostly people that looked like ghosts (ha, ha). In grade three, my teacher commented how much I loved to draw and thought there was potential for me to pursue art.
Later on in high school, I found myself sketching at every available opportunity. Living in the Okanagan provided me with a little piece of heaven, abundant with wildlife and breathtaking scenery. Several times, I would climb the mountains in Vernon to get away from the urban surroundings and immerse myself in the serenity and solitude that only a mountain atmosphere can provide. Many times my parents had no idea where I was.
Later on, I worked from job to job, then found myself in Edmonton, Alberta. I definitely had my share of challenges along with health issues.
Why Floral Painting?
In the mid 90’s, I saw Donna Dewberry on TV and her shows fascinated me as she painted flowers with acrylics. I started to paint flowers on all kinds of surfaces, from mailboxes, to park benches and even an outhouse (ha, ha). I basically dabbled in all kinds of crafts.
Then I came across “The Beauty of Oil Painting” with Gary and Kathwren Jenkins.
That was it for me! I had to learn all I could and hone this craft and as a result, I have stayed with floral painting ever since!
Many times, my husband and I would visit his parents in rural Alberta. As you can imagine, there is so much wildlife there that I finally had to capture this on canvas. This woke something up in me, causing me to reminiscence and reflect on all the wildlife pictures I had taken while growing up in Vernon.
With all of this wonderful reference material, I have many future painting projects ahead of me.
Why Great Art?
To answer this, one must think that great art does one of two things: it either causes a viewer to “think” or “feel.” If it doesn’t resonate with them, or evoke any emotion, they may say ‘that’s nice’ and move on without taking a second look. In our opinion, good art can be any style, technique or level of skill, but to qualify as great art, it must touch and stimulate something in the viewer’s mind and heart. Good art can reflect a concept, excellent skills and so forth, but we think Great Art must touch the mind, heart and soul of the viewer.
A Creative Partnership
Great Art by Kurylo is a husband and wife team working out of their home studio in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Both are talented artists using different mediums, so it only made sense to collaborate in sharing our talent with the world.
“If you hear a voice within you saying, “You are not a painter,” then by all means paint… and that voice will be silenced.” ~ Vincent van Gogh
