An artist that immediately captured my attention when I was younger was Vladmir Kush. I was fortunate enough to view his gallery on the island of Maui prior to the 2023 fire which decimated the city of Lahaina.
Kush’s artwork stuck out to me and captured my attention! Not only is he technically very skilled – as was evidenced by his high quality paintings of wine bottles (they looked like photographs!), but he is clearly a whimsical and playful artists, and his magical fantastical themes truly delight! He includes a lot of fantastic imagery – a book which opens into another world which is also part of a tree trunk, a ship at sea powered by butterfly sails resting upon a tablecloth, a gigantic elephant with a tuba in place of it’s head, and many others! It is fascinating how unlocking your imagination can bring such beautiful imagery to mind!