“Watercolor? There is no such medium like this”

Luiza Poreda, 25 September 2020

Mariusz Kula mainly paints veduta – city landscapes. As he says himself, he tries not to limit himself. Each topic can be interesting. He believes that it is always worth searching, going beyond the comfort zone, “otherwise we do not develop”.

 

 

Ever since Mariusz Kula can remember, he has always painted or drawn something. As he says himself, it was something natural for him:

– In elementary school I realized that I think I do it well enough that I stand out above my colleagues. I noticed this during art classes when other classmates came up to me and asked me to draw or paint something for them so that they could get a better grade. Soon after, I had my first exhibitions in school cabinets. Then it was a great achievement for me – he says.

 

 

In the following years, Mariusz Kula started attending art classes at the Kluczbork House of Culture.

– This place was a catalyst for change for me. I realized that this is what my life could be like, I wanted to paint a lot, then I painted mainly with oil paints. The classes were conducted by a wonderful person, Mrs. Ewa Gutkowska-Surowiec. It is thanks to her and several other people that I am currently painting. After high school, I got into pedagogical and artistic studies, where I was lucky that no one disturbed me in learning painting. I learned a lot from teachers, although – interestingly – I learned the most from my peers – says Mariusz Kula.

After graduation, the artist took up computer graphics and did not paint anything for a long time. Only in recent years have I felt the hunger for creation again, which – as he himself says – is now stronger, because “more mature”.

 

 

“It is worth looking for, going beyond the comfort zone”

A few years ago, while browsing pages on social networks, Mariusz Kula came across Joseph Zbukvic’s watercolors. As he says, when he saw them, he was speechless:

– It just blasted my head in an instant. Watching his works, and later other outstanding watercolors, such as Alvaro Castagneta, Dusan Djukaric or Michał Jasiewicz from our backyard, I realized that watercolor has great creative potential, it can be both hyper-realistic and totally ethereal. This span and lightness that lies in it is unique and unrepeatable. There is no other medium like this – he says.

 

He knew then that “he wants that too” and now he is on the “narrow path leading to the high mountains of watercolor difficulties”.

Currently, Mariusz Kula wants to paint as much as possible in order to perfect his skills and thus get closer to his unsurpassed idols. The artist also runs watercolor groups and workshops in various Polish cities. He hopes that after the restrictions related to the coronavirus epidemic are over, he will be able to show his work live again to interested audiences.

Mariusz Kula’s painting gallery in the Online Art in House Gallery