Poetic Landscapes Series
AQUATIC Series
ANASTASIA GKLAVA
B. 1966, Greece
Anastasia Gklava is a poetic landscape artist and expert at gold gilding, which she utilizes in her work. Her painting technique has a fresh and honest feeling, and her pieces will brighten up any space.
Born in Athens, Greece, Gklava studied under the academician Manuela Armada, at Fine Art Academy in Madrid. In 2014-2016 she was selected to represent and exhibit Greek landscapes at the Eleftherios Venizelos National Airport of Athens.
What intrigues her most, and is the central theme of Gklava’s work, is nature. The Tree, her favourite motif, brings alive the fundamental quest to express something more personal in an iconic and poetic way. It becomes the symbol of the Home, Love, Freedom and Shelter we have all been seeking through our lives.
Capturing what she calls "the secret life of trees", her brightly coloured subjects are surrounded by gold, which gives a dramatic and pristine effect. Traditionally used in Byzantine art, gold conveys a sacred, warm and divine feeling. Her simple and straight forward compositions draw our attention to the miracle of nature and its elegance.
Gklava paints her iconic trees in olive groves and orchards near her summer house in Greece. She resists the temptation of working from photographs and loves painting mostly outside, on location where the colours are accurate and true, transferring this beauty to the viewer.
Gold gives Gklava’s paintings an unpredictable radiance that varies according to the viewer’s perception. As one studies a painting, the colors change and are as variable as they are in nature.
“I’m particularly interested in the simple beauty of mutable natural environments following the circles of time. It’s an effect that somebody can only appreciate in person.” - Anastasia Gklava, 2019
