Stunning Portraits by an Aspiring Master
Gazing at a gallery of work by portrait artist Susha Holubytska, you lean in to see if the images are photographs. A closer look tells you they are stunning paintings by a creative mind with a master’s appreciation of light and composition.
Her artistry radiates from her surroundings, which at first included her two-year-old son, the only model she had, his father, and her sister. Susha’s stunning self-portrait reveals a talent far beyond the two years she’s been concentrating on oils.
Shown a painting of a prominent judge recently unveiled to much fanfare, she was speechless as it was apparent her work far exceeded that of the well-established professional. Challenged for studio time as a busy mother with another child on the way and a flourishing cake decorating business, her work ethic is staggering as she starts at the easel in the wee hours before her family begins to stir. “I wanted my art to last a little longer, so l started in oils,” explained the multimedia specialist whose mother enrolled her in creative studies at age 10.
Her output has been impressive, capturing the nuances of a pet bird as her boy, a sparkle of vitality in his eye, peels an orange aglow from the light of an open window. The youngster’s growth is chronicled in a series of portraits that will someday hang in museums as priceless examples of a famed artist’s early work.
The young painter came to Long Island from the Cossack city of Sumy, where she led a diligent life before her country became embroiled in a war with Russia. She arrived through an internship with Kurt Weiss Greenhouses in Center Moriches, one of the largest flower growers in the country, though she prefers portraits over pastorals.
Her Manorville home is a world apart from northeastern Ukraine, which Susha said she left just at the right time. Her father, a Ukrainian, saw his workplace destroyed during a battle while her mother, a Russian, is back in her home country. “It’s complicated,” says the expat who worries that her dad, even at age 58, could get conscripted to fight. The residents of her home city had previously spoken Russian but now speak only Ukrainian after they were attacked. With the diverse background of his mother, Susha’s little son, Albert Mishka, gets a trilingual education here in the States.
Susha is currently working on commissions and paints directly through sittings, along with studying about 500 photographs and videos to capture what she considers the most important aspects of a painting: light and shading. “It takes between 40-100 hours for a portrait,” she says, “but I can’t ask them to sit that long.”
Her inspirations are the Renaissance visionaries Raphael, DiVinci, and Michaelangelo, and her creations show a deep reverence for their classical techniques. “You can see how much time they put into their work,” she says of the great masters, adding that modern-day artists have the advantage of not having to mix their own paints.
Someday soon, Susha Holubytska will put down her cake pans for good and devote her full time and energy to securing her place in the annals of art history. Inquiries for this aspiring master can be directed at sushaholubytska@gmail.com, and you can see her work at http://sushaholubytska.com.