Anastasia Varlamova is an artist and illustrator based in Portugal (originally from Russia). A 2014 graduate of the British Higher School of Art and Design, she has developed a multifaceted illustration career, collaborating with agencies such as BBDO and BangBang in Moscow and creating memorable visual campaigns for a variety of brands. She has also participated in Portuguese illustration festivals including Braga em Risco and Fólio Ilustra, gaining recognition within the artistic community of Northern Portugal.
Living in Portugal since 2019, Anastasia draws profound inspiration from the country’s distinctive light, its landscapes, and the cultural richness of places like Madeira Island. These influences, combined with her sensitivity to color and form, guide her transition into abstract fine art.
Working primarily with pencil, she explores rhythm, texture, and color as emotional and physiological experiences. For Anastasia, color is not simply a tool but a sensory reality with the ability to evoke direct emotional response. Her abstract compositions reflect a meditative return to analogue expression, transforming personal experience into a harmonious visual language of tone, structure, and rhythm.
You spent many years working as an illustrator before deciding to dive into abstract art — what motivated this shift, and how does your illustration background inform your current abstract work?
For the past 15 years, I worked as an illustrator and graphic designer, mostly in digital media. Illustration is closely tied to briefs, client expectations, and rounds of revisions, and over time I began to miss the experience of creating freely. My abstract work grew out of a need for autonomy, calm, and the simple pleasure of drawing for myself rather than for a client. With the rapid development of artificial intelligence , the demand for illustrators has noticeably shifted, and I found myself questioning the value of investing so much energy into something that technology can now replicate in seconds. I felt both tired and uninspired — and abstract art became a way to reclaim my creative voice and reconnect with the process in its purest form.
Having relocated from Moscow to Cascais (Portugal) in 2019, you often mention that the natural landscape and light of your new home inspired you deeply . Could you describe what is it in the Portuguese light and environment that resonates with your artistic sensibilities, and how it translates into the forms and colours of your abstract pieces?
The surrounding nature the ocean, the wind, the calm rhythm of the coast inspires me to simplify forms and let them breathe. Everything here feels lighter and more expansive, and these sensations shape both the colours and the structures of my abstract pieces.
In your artist statement you mention that your visual work “embodies the harmony and vibrancy of nature.” How do you balance , or perhaps integrate , that connection to nature with abstraction? Do you start conceptualising pieces from observed nature, or do they emerge more intuitively and emotionally?
I see nature as a space of calm and grounding, and my abstractions serve the same purpose - a safe field for pure creative energy. Both give me the balance that I need.
Transitioning from illustration commissions (editorial, commercial) to personal abstract works involves a different kind of freedom and risk. How has this change affected your creative process, and what challenges or revelations have you encountered along the way?
Shifting from commissions to personal abstraction has opened a space for full creative freedom, but with it comes uncertainty of course . It challenges me to trust my intuition, to train my discipline and embrace the possible risk. I have to be ready to discover unexpected directions in my work and learn from the process.
As your first exhibition of abstract artworks approaches: what do you hope viewers experience when they see your paintings? Is there a message, an emotion, a sensation — or simply a moment of pause and reflection — that you aim to evoke?
I hope viewers find a moment to immerse themselves in my world of still compositions, where time stands still and space dissolves, leaving only color and form for each to experience in their own way.
Finally — how does living and working in Portugal influence not only what you create, but how you create? Do you feel that Lisbon / Cascais / Portuguese culture has changed your perspective as an artist, and if so — in what ways?
Living in Portugal has given my days structure and calm : morning walks along the ocean, unhurried conversations, a good coffee in a favorite cafeteria. This slower rhythm feeds my work, helping me focus and create with more clarity. The Portuguese approach to enjoying life, which I learn to appreciate everyday, has subtly changed my perspective, making presence and observation an integral part of my art.
