My name is Maria Finiak but I am mostly known in the UK as Maria Fin. I am originally from Western Ukraine, from the small, picturesque town of Chortkiv, where I went to school and to an Institute of Higher Education.
I’ve loved painting since I was a small child. I used to be fascinated by people who could create a whole new world from a blank canvas. (It was only many years later that I found out they were called ‘artists’!) Their craft looked like magic to me, transforming a palette of ordinary colours into sweeping landscapes or carefully considered still-lifes. Whether the images made me feel sad and thoughtful, or joyful and excited, I loved the emotions they conjured up. Little did I imagine then that I would one day be a ‘magician’ myself.
I didn’t study art formally in Ukraine but I sensed I had a flair for it. When I was at school, I would take part in fine art competitions. And for a while I attended art classes at Chortkiv Centre for Children’s Creativity. But that was as far as it went. For many years my passion for painting remained dormant.
Then, in 2016, I found myself in London. The fascinating and vibrant new city – and all the different friends I was making – sparked a change in me and I was inspired to pick up my paint brush again. This time I was determined to hone my skills and formalise my training. I enrolled in the London Art Academy and, at the same time, I started studying at the studio of UK-based Ukrainian artist Olga Brown. From here, I continue to develop and refine my skills. But my inspiration remains what it always was – my childhood memories, my family and my enduring love of nature.
The exhibitions where I have shown my work:
2022 – UK for Ukraine: Support through art, Jubilee Place, Canary Wharf, London, UK.
2022 UK for Ukraine: Support through art, Posk Gallery, London, UK.
2022 – UK for Ukraine: Support through art, Canada Place, Canary Wharf, London, UK.
2022 – Annual Art Exhibition, The Friends of Holland Park, London, UK.
2021 – Parallax Art Fair. The International Artists’ Art Fair 30th Edition in October 2021 at Kensington Town Hall, London, UK
2021 – Solo exhibition. Chortkiv, Ukraine.
2019 – Parallax Art Fair. The International Artists’ Art Fair 27th Edition in October 2019 at Kensington Town Hall, London, UK.
2019 – Parallax Art Fair. The International Artists’ Art Fair 26th Edition in July 2019 at Kensington Town Hall, London, UK.
2019 – Annual Art Exhibition, The Friends of Holland Park, London, UK.
2019 – Parallax Art Fair. The International Artists’ Art Fair 25th Edition in February 2019 at Chelsea Town Hall, London, UK.
2018 – Annual Art Exhibition, The Friends of Holland Park, London, UK.
2017 – Exhibition of Ukrainian art association in London, UK.