Arina Gordienko

Russian-born British artist ARINA (Arina Gordienko) works at her studio in London and widely exhibits her paintings all over the world, including New York, Venice, Hamburg, Marseille etc. Her paintings have been featured at many venues including the world-famous Saatchi Gallery and prestigious Mall Galleries in London. ARINA has been recognized with a number of awards in the UK, USA and Europe. Her works are in private collections worldwide, including Gustav Metzger private collection. ARINA studied at the Central Saint Martins College of Art and completed her Master’s degree in Fine Art at the Chelsea College, University of the Arts London. In 2010 ARINA has become a full-member of the Society of Women Artists in the United Kingdom.

During her life ARINA has been on a long journey to achieve the opportunity to be an artist and do what she loves most.  ARINA’s life has changed quite dramatically several times, but whatever she was doing in her life she dreamt of becoming a professional artist. Painting was her passion from the very childhood.

She was born in the Far North of Russia, which is closer to Alaska than to Moscow, and for the first four years of her life she saw only endless white fields of the polar snow around her. When she was 4 years old, her mother has moved with her to the Ural’s Mountains area - one of the most beautiful parts of Russia. She has remembered very clearly the morning, when she had seen the first flowers in her life. Being a little child, after watching only white-snow space everywhere in her life before, she could not imagine how colourful the world around can be. ARINA said that she ‘was almost shocked by the colours of flowers and its beauty, and still keep inside this amazing feeling of admiration of the nature. I remember the fear of that little girl that all this discovered beauty may suddenly disappear from my life again, and tomorrow I could have watched the only white colour of the snow instead of all the bright colours. I felt at that moment the strongest desire to save the beauty of the world in my life forever. I believe it was the moment when the Artist inside me was born’.

She lived in a small town in Russia and said that ‘as far back as I can remember I painted everywhere I could find a spare place, on walls in my room, on furniture and on doors, on clothes and even in lesson books at school’.  Later she finished Art School that provided her with the basic artistic skills, ready for development at the right time. She believes that Russian school of drawing and painting has a very big influence on her creativity as well as music and literature.  ARINA used to study at Music College as a chorus conductor and says that she ‘still perceive everything in the world through a musical harmony, whether this is the harmony of singing voices, music, words or colours. I am trying to transfer the harmony into my paintings’. She has worked in different fields, however always related to art.

In 2005 ARINA started her studying at the worldly known Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, University of the Arts London. She said that she was ‘the oldest, but certainly the happiest student on my course and yet determined enough to start my life from zero to follow my dream – to become an artist’. In 2008 she has successfully completed her education with Masters Degree in Fine Art at the Chelsea College of Art, University of the Arts London.  ARINA is now a full-time artist and works in her studio in London. She constantly exhibits her paintings around the UK, in Europe and USA having achieved several international painting prizes and awards. Her works are in private collections worldwide, including Gustav Metzger private collection.  In 2010 ARINA has become a full-member of the Society of Women Artists in the United Kingdom.