Meet Alex Odnoralov | Visual Artist & Painter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alex Odnoralov and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alex, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
Art is something I’ve always known. I’ve been drawing ever since I could hold a pencil. Through out my childhood and teen years I would use almost all my free time to either paint or sketch. I’ve always had a natural pull towards art and creativity. But I always doubted I could ever make a career out of it. I convinced myself that I needed to go to college and get a degree in something practical. I chose to pursue a degree in industrial design because that field was the closest I could get to being creative while still learning practical skills. Industrial design was creative enough to keep me content but it was too methodical and engineering-based in the long run. I graduated In the spring of 2020 and set out to find a design related job. While job hunting, I would paint and do art commissions for clients. Eventually that demand started growing and I realized I could transition into doing this full time. I believe this is the best time in history to be an artist. We have so many tools at our disposal like social media to put ourselves and our work out there. I’m not saying it’s all easy, but the opportunity is definitely there and it would be almost criminal to not at least try.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I work mostly with oil and acrylic paint on small to large canvases. My work is mostly representational themes like landscapes, portraits, and still life. I also explore abstract art as well. I would say my art is led by emotion and feeling. Sometimes when I’m traveling I’ll end up at a place that just speaks to me. Whether It’s the colors, composition, or atmosphere. I end up wanting to capture that moment so I would take reference photos and paint it. I’ve had multiple people tell me that my paintings have a dreamy quality to them and I love that. One of the things that makes me stand out from other artists is that I build my own canvases and frames. I did this to save on material expenses but it quickly became a labor of love. There’s something about picking out the right wood, stain, and finish for the frame that gives the painting an elevated look and unique touch. I would say I’m a relatively new artist. I’m always learning and setting new goals for myself but I got to where I am by just being passionate about my work, putting my best effort into every piece, and reaching out to every opportunity that presents itself before me.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Denver is a great city with many things to see and do, so there are many ways to show my friend a great time! Most of my friends and I are huge suckers for plants so we would go to Denver Botanic Gardens to see a wide variety of plants from all over the world. I would definitely take them to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains to see the famous Red Rocks Park. Take an evening stroll through the 16th Street Mall. Cant miss taking them to Table Top Mountain at sunset to see the city lights from afar. As far as food goes, there are an incredible amount of delicious restaurants eat at but by far my favorite place to go to is the Denver Central Market.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Firstly, I definitely want to dedicate my shoutout to my parents. They could have easily shut down my dream of pursuing art but they have been nothing but supportive. I also want to shoutout to just kind people I met along my journey like Nick Engen who supported my art directly and also my advertising efforts.

Website: https://www.alexodnoralovart.com/

Instagram: @alexodn.art

Image Credits
Anetta Odnoralova