Ukrainian Svitlana shares her love of art with residents of Cleobury Mortimer

Now Svitlana Dzedzei, from Lviv, is hoping to gain commissions and, among her vast array of talents, is producing pet portraits.

Svitlana studied and graduated from art school and college in Ukraine but was forced to leave her native home and has settled in Cleobury Mortimer with Paul Serrell-Cooke and his family.

Her art work, which has been on display in Ludlow recently, focuses on oil works created in the technique of impressionism, using bright colours and portraying her emotions. Each work indicates the state or feeling of the inner world of people.

"I love to paint," she said. "I like using colours and getting fluidity and emotion into my work.

"In the early stages of the war, I painted with the raw emotion of what was going on in my country at the time.

"But now I want to go back to what I was trying to achieve with my paintings prior to the war."

Svitlana says she has been left devastated by what has been happening in Ukraine but said people in Shropshire have been incredibly kind.

"There are no words to describe the situation in Ukraine," she said. "It's very terrible. It is catastrophic. Life just stopped.

"I am here (in Shropshire) now but every day I think about Ukraine.

"My heart is there. My emotions are still very much with it.

"But I want to thank the people here who have been very good and very kind.

"The Serrell-Cooke family have been wonderful hosts."

Diane Martin owner of The Gallery, 1 Park Way, Ludlow, kindly displayed some of Svitlana’s work from early July through August as her “visiting artist”.

The Mascall Centre in Ludlow have also agreed to display Svitlana’s work through October.

To ask Svitlana to create a pet portrait or a painting, you can find her work on Instagram, on her page – art_s_dzedze – or email her dominant-mebli@ukr.net