My art is as spontaneous as a jazz improvisation. I consider every piece unique and never plan to focus on a single subject and build my art around it.

I never plan to focus on a single subject and build my art around it. Instead, I consider every piece of art unique and, in this sense, my art is as spontaneous as a jazz improvisation. I always have a clear vision of the complete piece but introduce sudden notes as I go. I lead the painting, making it follow my vision, and sometimes vice versa – the painting itself leads me in my work. This happens just like in a musical improvisation, where an almost accidental, unimportant note or a chord suddenly create in the composer's imagination a new move, which later unravels in front of us.

Highly realistic objects such as plants or animals cohabit my works together with abstract elements. My paintings and graphics always include a lot of decorative motifs. Arrangements of bright spots and rhythmic ornaments resonate with the informational background of the modern lifestyle. Combination of abstract and realistic surrounded by extra detail suits my idea of the contemporary aesthetics and visual communication. My works are intended to be seen as fragments of larger unseen compositions that extend beyond the frame. Having no boundaries and no polished finish gives the paintings movement and vitality. They are just small snapshots of a larger imaginary reality.

Born and educated in Moscow, Russia, I received formal education in art as well as in applied arts: costume design, painting on silk and leather, and design of tapestry, which I found particularly interesting because I felt it allowed for extra volume and texture.

I spent a few years in Heidelberg, Germany – a town of picturesque hills and ruins of medieval castles, which inspired artists and poets of German Romanticism and provided great influence on work. There I got naturally attracted to landscapes in both watercolor and oil paint. And finally, when I moved moved to the United States, my paintings became more abstract with hidden animal and plant motifs.
Maya Gerr - Shoes

Over the years, I had personal exhibitions at a number of Moscow museums, Daniels gallery in Brookline, ATAC Main Gallery at Amazing Things Art Center in Framingham, participated in a number of exhibitions and the art show in Wrentham, MA. I've been selected to participate in Open Studios in Newton, MA since 2005. Many of my pieces are now in private collections in Germany, Russia, and the United States. My selected pieces soon go on display in the Stable of Artists gallery in Wrentham and From Russia with Art gallery in Cambridge.

Portfolio: