The Golden Cage
20 x 24 in.
Oil on canvas
Available through the artist
Liliya Muglia: I was born in the former Soviet Union where I studied classical art in an academic setting from the age of nine. During my years in L’viv, Ukraine, I obtained a master’s degree in pharmacy, but after the Chernobyl explosion and subsequent collapse of the economy, I migrated to Canada where I requalified as a pharmacist at the University of Toronto. I also continued my studies at the Academy of Realist Art (ARA) and graduated in 2013.
Today I have left the field of pharmacy and am a full-time artist with my studio located at ARA in Toronto, Canada. As a classically trained artist, I use the realism of my work to support my imaginative disrupted vision of the world which comes from my personal life experience, and future expectations.
I typically paint in oils and develop themes based on a narrative much as a writer who writes a novel with main and supportive characters and frequent changes of composition and color schemes. I do preliminary studies in charcoal and conte with real models and create subjects from different perspectives. In these studies, I use different sceneries, clothing, accessories, and attributes as part of a foundation for the final execution of my work.
The goal of my work is to transform my subjects into a narrative and to capture the subtlety of the human condition. By doing this I bring to life paintings which involve and engage the viewer through the beauty of interpretive realistically painted works within an imaginative disrupted reality. I produce art as a statement of my thoughts, fears, and desires and deliver the viewer my artistic vision.
My creative motifs often illustrate the power and beauty of feminine interpretations. These interpretations can be found in the depictions of feminine forms weather they contain human subjects or not. In addition, each piece is painted with a tension in mind and this tension is felt by the viewer and although sometimes the characters may struggle, fail or perish, the strength of the feminine protagonist is always present.
As a result of disillusionment with conceptual and post-modern art at the end of the 20th Century, many artists have turned to a more traditional figurative representation in order to reach their audience on a higher level of interpretation. Most of these artists studied in ateliers under the curriculum of the Old French Academy (17th to 19th Century) obtaining the technical skills of the old masters in order to create their artistic statement.
I am one of these artists who embraced the traditional forms of classical academic interpretation in order to create new and modern interpretations of classical realism. My works come through the prism of my thoughts with precise execution and this inspires the imagination and affirmation in the mind of the viewer and seeks to change their artistic preference in favour of artwork that is refined and divine.
To see more of my work, visit:
Website: MUGLIA-ART.com
Instagram: muglia.art
Facebook: liliya.vovk
Contact me at: [email protected]