Glafira Taratynova (2000) was born in Moscow and has lived in the Netherlands for most of her life. She graduated in Autonomous Visual Arts at the Maastricht Institute of Art (Netherlands) with contemporary painting. She is pursuing a Master of Arts and Heritage at the University of Maastricht.

Her often monochrome paintings are visually and spiritually inspired by water. The reflective surface of water invites introspection and contemplation. Just as many spiritual practitioners use lakes, ponds, rivers, and other bodies of water as places for meditation and self-reflection, Glafira similarly approaches water. The fluid rhythm of water is visible through the rhythmic use of materials, from repeating rows of monochrome images to textures. For Glafira, the importance lies in encountering and appreciating things that happen inside the studio and in nature.

The titles of her works are like excerpts from a larger tale, offering glimpses into enchanting landscapes where nature and imagination intertwine. By employing evocative language, Glafira aims to create a dialogue between the viewer and the artwork, encouraging curiosity and transforming the act of viewing into an exploration of storytelling, to allow imagination to wander freely through the realms. The words invite the audience to visualise a scene, to engage with the emotions and experiences of, for example, feeling so calm that the eyes go numb, or mythical personas playing in a misty pond near a moss field. She often incorporates ‘eye-related’ sceneries in titles because being able to see the beautiful and the ugly is the greatest gift one can have.