Maria Villioti
Maria was born in the small historic island of Salamis, nested away in the inlet of the Saronic Gulf. Now she lives in Athens, Greece. She studied fashion design, freehand drawing. Although she occasionally works with acrylics and oils, her favorite mediums are colored pencils and graphite.
Painting came into her life very early. She created her first portrait when she was 9 years old. It was a sketch of her grandfather. Since then, she has known that she aspired to become a painter.
She used to paint with various media and tried many techniques. In some painting lessons she was initiated into colored pencils, and she realized that this material was the one that expresses her perfectly. She has always loved realism and colored pencils allow her to capture the details accurately. Her artwork includes portraits, still life, cityscapes and landscapes. She teaches pencil techniques to adults and organizes workshops throughout Greece.
She has participated in many joint exhibitions in Greece, United Kingdom, United States, Canada and Italy and she has won many international awards. Maria has five solo exhibitions in Athens, Zakynthos, Chania, and Thessaloniki, Greece.
She is gold signature member of UKCPS, signature member of CPSA, member of Portrait Society of America, member of International Guild of Realism and member of Chamber of Fine Arts of Greece.
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