My Story and My Style

I’m Vanya — a scientist by mind, an artist by soul. After many years working as a clinical psychologist, I turned to fine art as a deeper form of hope, freedom, and joy — for myself and for others.

A true Balkan spirit, I live and love on Ireland’s west coast, in the heart of Galway. Raised in Bulgaria’s Rose Valley — the ancient capital of the Thracian kings, also known as the city of artists — I grew up steeped in history, beauty, and tradition. From an early age, I studied fine art, sculpture, and graphic design at the renowned local school of design, and I’ve carried those roots with me ever since.

I come from a lineage of rose oil producers, scientists, writers, teachers, doctors, priests — people of craft, knowledge, and storytelling. I always look at roots, not fruits. Yet I believe in a brighter tomorrow and fall asleep each night with simple contentment.

My work is rooted in Ireland — its landscapes, towns, and skies — yet propelled by the Balkan palette and rhythm. Every brushstroke reflects my journey, where East meets West, and each work is shared from the heart — with love, from me to you❤️

My Painting Style

My work celebrates the physicality of paint — raw, alive, and immediate. I often work between realism and abstraction, allowing emotion to guide form and colour. Brushstrokes stay open and honest: the pulse of the moment left on the surface, always visible, raw, and deliberate. I paint fast, loose, and from the gut — where instinct leads and perfection has no place.

I love exploring the tension between structure and spontaneity: full-arm gestural painting meeting the geometry of a loose composition.

I paint the Irish spirit — the shifting skies, the restless sea — but the Balkans drive the brush. The land shapes me, the roots push through. An Irish artist with a Balkan soul.

I began with watercolour, that wild, unpredictable medium that teaches surrender and trust; its immediacy still drives me. Now I work exclusively in oils, painting alla prima — one breath, one chance, no return.

My paintings are both visually striking and commercially appealing. Each of my paintings is one of a kind — when you acquire one, you own a singular work of art.