Karina Eibatova is a visual artist who has previously published work on our website and has also appeared in Juxtapoz, the New York Times, Wired, and The Verge. She has shown her artworks in Vienna, Berlin, Tokyo, London, and Los Angeles. Karina, born in St. Petersburg during the USSR's twilight, has pursued her passion for art and established an international career and academic trajectory from a young age. At the moment Karina is based in Devon, UK. 

Karina's first collaboration with a UK company was with Atlantic Records in 2010. The artist created the cover artwork for the Versaemerge "Fixed At Zero" disc. The popularity of Karina's graphics in the early 2010s brought her many projects around the world at the very beginning of her artistic career.

Karina began her fine art studies in 2007 at a foundation school in Sweden. In 2014, Karina studied at Central Saint Martins in London on the Fine Arts 4D faculty. She later studied art in Tokyo and attained her first MA in fine art from the Art Academy in Vienna.

Later in 2020, she did a cover for the fabulous British musician Tom Adams, which will only be released this year. After, Karina pursued her second Master's degree at the Art University Plymouth in the Southwest of the UK. There, she reached a new level of creativity, where her practice took on a more personal and profound approach: her paintings increased in size, and from watercolour and pencil graphics, she began to focus more on oil painting.

Renowned artist Richard Kenton Webb, who is an award-winning artist and educator with over 30 years of extensive experience at institutions including The Slade School of Fine Art, admires Karina's work, and he has left a review of Karina's last exhibition.

From the author’s manifesto

“Currently, my personal creative practice is centered on oil on canvas. I explore imagery drawn from nature, dreams and imagination and strive to create an immersive and contemplative experience for the viewer through color and symbolism. My painting is at the crossroads, somewhere abstract, in some places not so much: a landscape or a body, a stone or a tree. In my recent works I try to reflect the value of the human body and of life itself, without resorting to depicting human figures, I try to depict our inner world, a secret landscape full of organs and light. Through a combination of neon, dark and pastel colours I want to express a sense of hope”.

This year, Karina was awarded the “Artist of the Month” prize in Zima magazine, one of the most recognised Russian-speaking media projects based in London. One of her works is on display in the city centre of London this summer.

Intriguingly, two individuals made a similar comparison with English painter, engraver, and illustrator John Martin, which prompts the audience to contemplate the relationship between the apocalyptic landscapes of the 19th century and Karina's dramatic works. We'll continue keenly observing this gifted artist's upcoming creative endeavours.

About the author

Arseny Vesnin founded Designcollector, a platform established in 2003 in Russia. Designcollector is one of the pioneering digital magazines dedicated to covering and supporting the digital art scene and creative communities in Russia and beyond. The platform showcases a variety of content related to digital art, design, and visual culture, providing artists, designers, and creatives with exposure and inspiration. Over the years, it has expanded to include digital art events like the Digital Decade, an exhibition featuring emerging visual artists and designers. Designcollector has always covered the intersection of art, design, music and culture.