Mariya McAllister

I was born and spent my childhood in a beautiful town – Lviv, in Ukraine. I have been drawing and painting since a very young age. Art was always part of me.

I grew up in Poland, where I studied at Poznan Art University and Lodz Technical University. I hold MA in Art Education and MSc in Graphic Design and Multimedia. I have worked as a Graphic and Motion Designer since 2009. In 2022, after my father had a serious stroke and Ukraine was attacked by Russia, I left my successful career in graphic design, to become a full time artist and art teacher with a mission to bring happiness to other people’s lives through art.

I am a member of Colchester Art Society, Ipswich Art Society and Holland Art Society.

My paintings have been exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists Annual Exhibition 2025, Open Summer Exhibition in The Minories (2024) and numerous group exhibitions. I am a finalist of the Artists of the Year 2024 competition and have been highly commended for my outstanding work “Pumpkins”.