Mikhail Baranovskiy
I've spent most of my life writing books, screenplays and plays. I understand well what a plot is, how it is built, what the laws of drama are. In the last ten years, stories are still being made up, but now I tell them differently. The writer in me has not gone away - he exchanged the pen for the brush. And in painting, as in literature, plot, conflict, drama, and a successful metaphor are important to me. I don't paint landscapes or still lifes. I am interested in a person in the lyrical, comic and tragic moments of his life.
How would you describe/define yourself?
I am a writer transformed into an artist.
When and why did you decide to choose painting designing as a career?
I have been drawing for as long as I can remember: in kindergarten, at school, at university, when I worked at a newspaper - caricatures of my colleagues... In 2014 I immigrated to Israel. I didn’t know the official language, and had very vague ideas about the future. One thing was clear: books, scripts - everything that I did in the past - needed to be left there. I was thinking about how to find myself in a new country. At the same time, in order to somehow pass the time and decorate the interior of my rented apartment, I started drawing. When all the walls were covered with paintings, I realized that I couldn’t stop. And then it turned out (very conveniently) that there are quite a few walls all over the world ready to accept my work. And this has been going on for ten years.
What according to you is a favorite part of being a Paint Artist?
In my opinion, any work of art should surprise. Therefore, the main component of the creative process is fantasy. If I manage to come up with something unexpected, paradoxical, and something that makes the viewer think, I am absolutely happy.
What inspires you as an Artist? How do you visualize your muses?
I am interested in an artistic statement that does not copy reality, but transforms it. For example, Henri Rousseau, who painted exotic jungles that he had never seen in his life. In addition, there are a number of people who have influenced me and what I do in one way or another. Here are a few names that are significant to me: Marc Chagall, Pablo Picasso, Amadeo Modigliani, Woody Allen, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Miles Davis and my wife.
What’s your signature painting element? And why?
I thought for a long time about how to achieve depth and volume of an image, in addition to known artistic means. Through trial and error, I achieved the desired result, using a paint roller as the basis for future work. As a result, the picture turns out to be more rich and polyphonic.
What’s the best piece of artistic advice you’ve heard? And do you follow it?
«Do not stop!»: Quantity turns into quality.
As we all know job of a painter is very tough. So how do you keep your mental and physical health fit?
For me, the work of an artist is not at all difficult. I don't consider it work at all. For me it is daily pleasure and joy. I consider myself incredibly lucky to do professionally what I would have done anyway in my free time from any other work.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out in their career and hoping to make it big as a Paint Artist?
Do not stop! Surprise!
To whom would you like to give credits of your journey till now?
To my wife, who took upon herself the burden of all the not very creative work associated with my artistic activity. She
handles my promotion on social networks, logistics and communication with collectors, organizing my exhibitions and even packaging the sold works.
Anything you wish to share or quote in your interview?
Famous Russian artist Pavel Filonov: “Let the picture speak for itself and act on the viewer’s intellect, forcing him, straining, to understand what is written without any prompter...”
