Valentina Voronkova

Artist Statement

I am an immigrant, a scientist turned artist, and a passionate explorer of nature through paint. In 1993, I arrived in Seattle with almost no English, ready to study biochemistry at UW. After earning my Ph.D., I spent years in biotech research, but the call of art never faded—it only grew louder. In 2012, I left science behind to immerse myself in classical training at the Mark O’Higgins atelier program at Gage Academy of Art in Seattle. Since then, I have actively participated in the Northwest art scene, earning several recognition awards. My deep love for nature, especially the landscapes of the Pacific Northwest, led me naturally to plein-air painting. Nature became my most important teacher. I embrace the Alla Prima method, where every brushstroke is a raw, immediate response to the world before me, nature or people. This technique forces an unfiltered, honest dialogue, where the subject of my painting could reveal its deepest secrets . And mysteriously those secrets are about love and beauty of Human Conditions…