My name is Mariya McAllister and I am an accomplished artist and art teacher based in Clacton on Sea, near Colchester in United Kingdom.

I love to paint beauty I see around me. It could be a beautiful flower, fruits or a landscape which captivates my heart. In the subject I am looking for vibrant, contrasting colours and interesting shapes. My favourite mediums are acrylics – because of vibrant colours and watercolours – because of interesting colours’ transitions. I am focusing on creating a painting which would capture every detail and colour shade of my subject.

I was born in a beautiful town – Lviv, in Ukraine. My grandmother had a great collection of watercolours and pencils in her cabinet, so I started drawing and painting very early. I found a great joy in art activities and decided to become an artist.

At the age of 13 I moved with my father to Poland, where I studied Graphic Design and Multimedia at Lodz Technical University. I had a great experience working in postproduction of Oscar Award winning stop frame animation “Peter and the Wolf” (2006). Film and animation were always close to my heart so I wrote my master’s thesis about visual effects in films.

Since receiving my Master’s degree with honours I have been working as a graphic and motion designer for various companies and a marketing agency in London. This experience has sharpened my skills in visual communication, helping me create engaging marketing content, animation, videos, and illustrations. While working I decided to pursue my dreams and studied Art Education at Poznan Art University. My internship in primary school let me witness the happiness which art brings to people’s lives.

When in 2022 my father had a serious stroke and at the same time my home country – Ukraine was attacked by Russia, I felt very worried and scared. I suddenly noticed how fragile and short is our life. Love is so important in our lives and to experience happiness we have to follow our heart. At the time of despair I found love and peace while painting. I left my work to become a full time artist and art teacher with a mission to bring happiness to other people’s lives through art.

I am a member of Colchester Art Society, Ipswich Art Society, Holland Art Society and Frinton Art Society, actively taking part in group exhibitions. Since 2024 I am a committee member of Holland Art Society, in charge of marketing and design.

I hold MA in Art Education and MSc in Graphic Design and Multimedia.