Olivana Tonon
Olivana…artist! And teacher of art!
Working full time from her Unionville home studio, Olivana is passionate in her commitment to expressing her artistic visions. She has explored a wide variety of styles, mediums and techniques, creating works ranging from detailed still life graphics to bold textured and contoured abstracts. She works with pencil, watercolour and acrylic paints, on canvas or paper. Accomplished in landscape realism, she is now enjoying her current exploration of abstract representation of realism with the use of acrylic mediums.
Olivana’s artistic abilities are inherent, and as an instructor at the Fred Varley Gallery in Unionville, she believes in nurturing the inherent abilities of her students in her relaxed and fun-filled classes. She also teaches private lessons to individuals and groups. She offers detailed guidance, while always focusing on enabling her students to create their visions of artistic expression.
Olivana’s creations, including commissioned pieces, are on display in private collections, locally and internationally.
Artist’s Statement
Painting in realism:
The world around us has exquisite beauty. Expressing this in an image as close to reality as possible, is a way of celebrating this beauty. The moment of any scene happens once. I try to re-create that scene to be enjoyed again and again.
On close observation of a flower, I am amazed by the intricacies of pattern and colour. I enjoy the challenged against time…recreating the delicate beauty before the flower fades.
From realism to abstract:
Inspired by nature…broad landscapes…sometimes a closer setting, I start with a sketch…creating smooth flowing compositions that I hope will evoke a sense of peacefulness…
Other times, I am inspired by the drama of modern architecture…the captured energy in form…and in these sketches, the challenge is to evoke the essence of this energy.
In either composition…serenity or vigour…I enjoy working with the variables of acrylic mediums to sculpt shape and create texture on canvas, By choosing only three pigments and working in the monochromatic scale, I hope to create a balance between the textural and visual elements of these compositions.