In this inspiring conversation, artist Valeria Talian shares her journey from her birthplace in Bratislava, Slovakia, to building a life and artistic career in South Africa. Valeria moved with her family to Pretoria in 1990, where her father worked as a violinist. Although music surrounded her from an early age, her heart was drawn to the visual arts—spending hours visiting galleries and exploring different forms of creative expression.
We talked about her early fascination with making and experimenting, and how this innate curiosity has shaped her path as an artist. After living in England for two years and later qualifying in Early Childhood Development, Valeria found herself returning to art as a powerful outlet for creativity. She began exploring diverse mediums—from mosaics, drawing, and painting to the ancient technique of encaustic art.
Through years of experimentation—sometimes with surprising or even disastrous results—Valeria developed a distinctive mixed-media style that reflects both her European roots and South African experiences. Today, she continues to evolve as an artist and proudly exhibits her work at Art Africa Gallery, where her textured, layered pieces invite viewers into her world of colour, memory, and emotion.
The Inspiration by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
#artistinterview #southafricanartists #petrasittigtheartistsvoice
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In this inspiring conversation, artist Valeria Talian shares her journey from her birthplace in Bratislava, Slovakia, to building a life and artistic career in South Africa. Valeria moved with her family to Pretoria in 1990, where her father worked as a violinist. Although music surrounded her from an early age, her heart was drawn to the visual arts—spending hours visiting galleries and exploring different forms of creative expression.
We talked about her early fascination with making and experimenting, and how this innate curiosity has shaped her path as an artist. After living in England for two years and later qualifying in Early Childhood Development, Valeria found herself returning to art as a powerful outlet for creativity. She began exploring diverse mediums—from mosaics, drawing, and painting to the ancient technique of encaustic art.
Through years of experimentation—sometimes with surprising or even disastrous results—Valeria developed a distinctive mixed-media style that reflects both her European roots and South African experiences. Today, she continues to evolve as an artist and proudly exhibits her work at Art Africa Gallery, where her textured, layered pieces invite viewers into her world of colour, memory, and emotion.
The Inspiration by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
#artistinterview #southafricanartists #petrasittigtheartistsvoice
The Power of Creativity: Tanya Keggin on Life, Art, and Purpose
Petra Sittig
1 hour 32 minutes 36 seconds
1 month ago
The Power of Creativity: Tanya Keggin on Life, Art, and Purpose
In this episode of The Artist’s Voice, I had the pleasure of speaking with Tanya Keggin, a Canadian artist who once worked for two decades as a marketing and advertising lawyer before following her true passion for art. From an early age, Tanya was drawn to painting and dreamed of a creative career, yet her many interests led her first into science and then into law. It was only years later, after building a successful legal career, that she took the courageous step of becoming a full-time professional artist.
Tanya’s paintings are expressive and deeply evocative, often exploring the connections between music, memory, and emotion. Her elevated painterly style reflects her love of materials and the joy she finds in the physical process of creating—through bold brushstrokes, intuitive mark-making, and a striking balance of realism and abstraction.
In our conversation, Tanya reflects not only on her personal journey from law to art but also on the broader importance of creativity in society. We spoke about how art shapes the way we think, solve problems, and make decisions, and why it is so valuable to nurture creativity in children from an early age. Tanya believes art education is not just about making future artists, but about giving young people the tools to think differently and approach any profession with imagination and confidence.
Her story is one of courage, transformation, and purpose—an inspiring reminder that it is never too late to reconnect with creativity and allow it to shape both life and work.
Petra Sittig
In this inspiring conversation, artist Valeria Talian shares her journey from her birthplace in Bratislava, Slovakia, to building a life and artistic career in South Africa. Valeria moved with her family to Pretoria in 1990, where her father worked as a violinist. Although music surrounded her from an early age, her heart was drawn to the visual arts—spending hours visiting galleries and exploring different forms of creative expression.
We talked about her early fascination with making and experimenting, and how this innate curiosity has shaped her path as an artist. After living in England for two years and later qualifying in Early Childhood Development, Valeria found herself returning to art as a powerful outlet for creativity. She began exploring diverse mediums—from mosaics, drawing, and painting to the ancient technique of encaustic art.
Through years of experimentation—sometimes with surprising or even disastrous results—Valeria developed a distinctive mixed-media style that reflects both her European roots and South African experiences. Today, she continues to evolve as an artist and proudly exhibits her work at Art Africa Gallery, where her textured, layered pieces invite viewers into her world of colour, memory, and emotion.
The Inspiration by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
#artistinterview #southafricanartists #petrasittigtheartistsvoice
