Today we’d like to introduce you to Viorica Rusnak.
Viorica, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve been a caregiver for the elderly for 20 years and in 2009 in Portland, Oregon, I started private caregiving for an art professor by the name of Jean Kendall Glazer and she is the one who saw that I had the passion and talent for art. She taught me everything I know about art and encouraged me to start painting with nail polish on canvas and gave me my first three canvases to take home and paint on. Shortly afterward, I was in a motor vehicle accident and was bedbound for one month and a half and lost my job as a caregiver to Jean, that is when I found the time to start creating.
Four months later, I separated from my husband of 26 years and moved to Orange County, California with my three boys, I was hired to live and manage one of my sister’s six-bed boarding care homes for the elderly as manager and Caregiver. On my spear time, I would paint in my bedroom or art studio in the garage. I always dreamt of having an art studio outside my home and but was always afraid of the unknown of starting a business by myself. Two and a 1/2 years ago, I meet artist Clara Berta through a mutual artist childhood friend Amber Goldhammer. Clara and I connected right away and she helped me with a lot of advice and guidance. In June 2019, Clara was looking to move from her current art studio in DTLA and find something bigger for herself.
After talking back and forth, I ask her if I could collaborate and share the art studio with her, she agreed, so we got the place together. It was a dream come true for me and also for Clara because she would be getting her dream as having her first art gallery for herself. We complement each other very well because she likes to paint during the day and gets the studio to herself and I enjoy painting at night and get the studio to myself, so we have the perfect balance of having our own time to create our paintings.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It’s been a challenge for me because of my full-time manager’s position for the elderly. And because of the drive to downtown LA from oc. I also have invested all my savings into the art studio, new supplies, and new paints and Continuously have to pay for growing my business as an artist.
My only advice to new young women starting their journey is to never give up on their dreams and calling.
What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
I am a modern abstract artist.
I enjoy painting stars, oceans, landscapes and because I’m also a big German car enthusiast and owner, I am also currently working on a BMW emblem series.
What sets me apart from other artists is because I paint with nail polish and incorporate acrylic paint.
I’m very proud of myself for painting with a different type of medium. And one of my future goals is to get sponsored by Sinful colors nail polish brand. That would help me tremendously to be able to afford to create more paintings.
Looking back on your childhood, what experiences do you feel played an important role in shaping the person you grew up to be?
I don’t believe there is any experience as growing up that influenced me in my art passion except for I grew up in a very colorful home. I was a young mother at the age of 15 when I had my daughter, got married to her father at 16 and decided to have more children so we had three boys after her. I never had the time to pursue any type of passion of mine because I was too busy being a working mother and raising for children. This is why I believe that I started to have more free time in my 30’s to pursue hobbies and passions of mine.
Contact Info:
- Website: VioricaRusnakArt
- Phone: 714-348-7912
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: Viorica Rusnak Art
- Facebook: Viorica Rusnak Art
Image Credit:
Viorica Rusnak
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