Naples's afternoon

Elena Gabbasova has studied art in Russia, but has lived in Finland since the 1990's. She is a member of the Helsinki Artists' Association, and she has had numerous exhibitions in both Finland and abroad. Elena paints on canvas, mostly with oil colors and pastels. The motives of her paintings are found in both landscapes and people. She is also a recognized portrait painter, having immortalized many famous persons with her paintbrush. She prefers to paint outdoors, where colors, light and life itself act as sources of inspiration. Sometimes she is most at home in her studio. Elena does not want to push her own thoughts of an artwork on to the viewer. Instead, she hopes the artwork speaks for itself.

“I mostly paint for myself. Some artists focus more on what they think the public wants. If you concentrate on the sales aspect, it may spill over in the artwork. When an artist creates art from her own perspective, the artwork gets a certain depth. It is kind of a paradox, that the art of experienced artists arouses more interest than art by artists, who mainly act from a selling perspective.”