What
an afternoon! I’ve just spent the last
couple of hours talking to a very interesting man, Vitya Malirsh, and viewing
the work he has finished in preparation for the Boyle Arts Festival this
week.
Vitya
tells me that he was born in Dublin in 1959 and, in spite of what his name may
convey, he is Irish. His father, Victor,
came over from Slovenia in 1954 to play the French Horn with the RTE Symphony
Orchestra and subsequently married Vitya’s mum, May, who lived in Cabra.
Vitya
didn’t “lick his talent off the stones”, rather he is preceded by five
generations of his mum’s family all of whom displayed artistic and creative
talents. He inherited his passion for
sign writing from his Uncle, Paddy Freeney, who lived and worked in Dublin.
Having
trained as a designer with Donegal Carpets, Vitya went on to run a successful
signwriting business while studying life drawing at night in the National
College of Art and Design. Shortly
before taking early retirement, he decided to make his home in Boyle where he
had spent many happy summers with his family as a young boy.
Since
then, he has been devoting his time and ability seeking to portray images that
convey the ambience and character of Ireland.
He is mindful of people who have emigrated over the decades, like his
Dad, who yearn for images that visually evoke their emotions and capture the
passions of their lives growing up and living in Ireland. He uses iconic landscapes as his subjects and
is steadily working his way around Ireland in search of typical reminders of
home.
It
was such a pleasure to meet him and to be able to share his enthusiasm for his
work. He is truly gifted and though he
is working with charcoal and pencil at the moment, his walls are covered in the
oils and watercolours that he has done over the years. Turn around and there you’ll see portraits of
all his dogs. The only thing missing is
a portrait of the wife but it’s doubtful she’d have the time (or, she tells me,
the patience) to sit still for the hours it takes!
I’m
looking forward to seeing his display in Boles of Boyle window and his entries
in the open art exhibition this week.
