Artist Lyudmila Agrich Returns to Mirada for 'Impressionable' Exhibition

Russian-born artist Lyudmila Agrich includes us all in her visual diary.

By Jan Thompson

Artist Lyudmila Agrich returns to Mirada Fine Art for her new 'Impressionable' exhibition.

A childhood spent in the beautiful seaside city of Odessa, Ukraine, has had a lifelong influence on artist Lyudmila Agrich.  Lush and luminous canvases have become her trademark, capturing the very light that entranced her as a child.  Her newest work, to be unveiled at Mirada Fine Art on October 8^th, once again reveals the mastery of her craft.  Entitled “Impressionable: A Visual Journey,” the collection of paintings allows us to join Agrich along this wondrous artistic path.

Lyudmila Agrich at Mirada Fine Art,
Nocturnal Etude, Oil on Canvas, 48" x 30"

The journey Lyudmila Agrich took to arrive at this point in her life has not always been easy.  Many years spent in the Odessa School of Fine Arts as a child and a Bachelors degree in Architecture and Fine Arts helped perfect her instinctual artistic talent.  After practicing Architecture in the Ukraine for a few years, Lyudmila literally won the lottery, the Diversity Visa Lottery (or green card lottery), allowing her and several members of the family to move to the U.S. in 1992.  Her husband was not as fortunate, spending time in a refugee camp before being allowed to join his wife here.  Throughout both success and tribulations, however, art has been a constant in Agrich’s life.  Settling in Denver, she pursued her career in Architecture for a few years. In 2001 Lyudmila decided to replace her drafting board, and devote herself to painting full-time.  For her, painting is not a job, a career, or even a choice.  She cannot fathom not answering the call of Art.

Lyudmila Agrich at Mirada Fine Art, 'Street Tango,'
Oil on Canvas, 24" x 24"

Frustrated by the limitations of a paintbrush, today Agrich’s tool of choice is a palette knife. This allows her to thickly apply lush color, imparting her hallmark impressionist glow.  Pictorial travels through radiant cityscapes, fields of flowers and seaside sunsets are captured with this layered application of color.  The newest collection of work not only evokes Lyudmila’s physical and emotional travels, but also allows viewers to recall their own.  Influenced by the music that always accompanies her while painting, Agrich strives to impart particular emotion onto each canvas.  And while undeniably beautiful, her work is meant to be much more.  “I want my paintings to be more than just pretty,” Agrich states. “The feeling I’m painting is as important as the scene I’m painting.”  She has been hugely successful at capturing that feeling on canvas.  Viewers of her work at Mirada Fine Art regularly exclaim how a particular painting reminds them of not only a location they’ve been to, but also brings them back to that moment, and exactly how they felt then, recalling their own personal journeys.

Lyudmila Agrich, 'Autumn Park,' Oil on Canvas, 36" x 36"

A reception with Lyudmila Agrich will be held on Friday, October 5 from 6-9pm at Mirada Fine Art Gallery.  The exhibit will run from October 6 – November 4.  Located just west of Denver in Indian Hills, quickly and easily accessible from most Denver metro neighborhoods, the gallery is on Parmalee Gulch Road off Hwy 285, five miles west of C-470. 

Lyudmila Agrich, 'Sunny Field,' Oil on Canvas, 36" x 48"

Melanie Warsinske and Joe Boddy: Elemental

‘Elemental’ exhibit offers contemporary visual take on our relationship with our surroundings.

Melanie Warsinske and Joe Boddy join forces for the 'Elemental' exhibition at Mirada Fine Art

A common thread that flows through many pieces of artwork represented at Mirada Fine Art is a presence of the indefinable attributes we love about Colorado.  Artists from throughout the world unite within the award-winning gallery, offering visual interpretations of humanity, nature, and their interaction.

Melanie Warsinske at Mirada Fine Art, 'Beat of the Drums,' Oil on Canvas, 40" x 40"

Two of Mirada’s artists most proficient at capturing that ‘Colorado essence’ come together in an exhibit opening on Friday August 10 with a reception for the artists. ‘Elemental: A Contemporary Interpretation of Nature’ will run through September 2.

Melanie Warsinske enjoys the opening reception of her 'Elemental' exhibition at Mirada Fine Art.

Evergreen artist Melanie Warsinske translates everything around her—rushing water, ethereal clouds, imposing mountaintops, rippling muscles of animals—into a very personal visual diary.  Lush and powerful, her paintings capture emotion and motion onto canvas, evoking visceral reactions in every viewer.  The idiosyncrasies of the environment continuously fascinate Melanie.  Dichotomous sensations of calm and chaos, power and vulnerability, drama and serenity are reflected in the texture, glints of metallic paint and compelling brushstrokes of Ms. Warsinske.

Joe Boddy at Mirada Fine Art, 'Getting a Handle on It,'
Mixed Media, 30" x 12" x 11"

Similarly inspired by the elements of the earth, and our human struggle to co-exist peacefully with nature and each other, sculptor Joe Boddy’s work epitomizes dynamic mixed-media as an art form.  The path that led Joe to art is not atypical for an artist — as a child he struggled to find a way to express himself.  What sets Joe apart is the strong, organic sculpture that he unearthed (sometimes literally) as a result of that journey.  ‘Rejected’ items take on a new life as fine art.  Fired clay, glass, cast iron farm equipment and recycled wood seamlessly combine in his distinctive sculptures.

Artist Joe Boddy at opening reception of 'Elemental' at Mirada Fine Art.

If you were not able to attend the 'Elemental' exhibition, you can still see other remarkable works of art by Melanie Warsinske and Joe Boddy at any time at Mirada Fine Art.

Melanie Warsinske at Mirada Fine Art,
'Chasm,' Oil on Canvas, 48"  36"

Joe Boddy at Mirada Fine Art, 'Slice of Life,'
Mixed Media, 64" x 15" x 15"