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Larissa was born in Belogorsk, a small town in Russia and later moved to The Russian FarEast where she spent her early childhood.
Her family moved to Moldova and finally settled in Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan.
At 19 Larissa went off on her own to study art in St Petersburg ( Leningrad ).
“Larissa began sculpting in kindergarten from doughy black bread, the only material she could get her hands on. It was just after the war. Russia was still recovering from hard times. Despite the pain from hunger in her tummy, my sister would eat only the breads crust. From the doughy insides, she sculpted a dog, a cat, a tree, but mostly she sculpted the portraits of family members and they were quite recognisable.
When Larissa was 12 years old, her artwork won a national competition for children. The picture depicted children of many nationalities dancing together and was chosen to be made into a national post stamp.
The organisers of this competition came from Moscow and were determined to make sure that nobody had helped my sister.
They couldn’t believe that little girl can draw like that” -Yakov Smagarinsky (brother)
At 14 Larissa went to the Art College to study painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, perspective, geometry and literature in Dushanbe Art College where she obtained her diploma. Later she continued her education in St Petersburg where she received a Master Degree in architectural, decorative and monumental sculpture.
Her first commissioned sculptures were carved oak based on Russian folklore and fairytales. They were installed in Parks near Moscow, Moldova and Kazakhstan. It is unlikely that these sculptures have survived harsh climatic conditions.
The themes and styles of her early work were chosen to escape from the soviet realism which dominated the era. Her crave for artistic freedom would later lead her to leave Russia for Australia.
The Sculpture Wedding Journey is a representation of the voyage into the unknown, be it marriage or a journey to foreign countries. Larissa has written a statement in poetic form to accompany the sculpture.
The Devil's soul becomes the ocean, waves grown taller, wind as Hell
Lonely, white boat in open waters, what is it trying to reveal?
Lonely white boat in stormy waters, what is it trying to achieve?
Boat fights big waves to a blue horizon, to happy shores, for fulfilment of Dream.
In Australia Larissa created a number monumental sculptures for public spaces.
For the last 17 years Larissa has been developing her own Sculpture Garden, 'The Garden of Eden'.
Her family moved to Moldova and finally settled in Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan.
At 19 Larissa went off on her own to study art in St Petersburg ( Leningrad ).
“Larissa began sculpting in kindergarten from doughy black bread, the only material she could get her hands on. It was just after the war. Russia was still recovering from hard times. Despite the pain from hunger in her tummy, my sister would eat only the breads crust. From the doughy insides, she sculpted a dog, a cat, a tree, but mostly she sculpted the portraits of family members and they were quite recognisable.
When Larissa was 12 years old, her artwork won a national competition for children. The picture depicted children of many nationalities dancing together and was chosen to be made into a national post stamp.
The organisers of this competition came from Moscow and were determined to make sure that nobody had helped my sister.
They couldn’t believe that little girl can draw like that” -Yakov Smagarinsky (brother)
At 14 Larissa went to the Art College to study painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, perspective, geometry and literature in Dushanbe Art College where she obtained her diploma. Later she continued her education in St Petersburg where she received a Master Degree in architectural, decorative and monumental sculpture.
Her first commissioned sculptures were carved oak based on Russian folklore and fairytales. They were installed in Parks near Moscow, Moldova and Kazakhstan. It is unlikely that these sculptures have survived harsh climatic conditions.
The themes and styles of her early work were chosen to escape from the soviet realism which dominated the era. Her crave for artistic freedom would later lead her to leave Russia for Australia.
The Sculpture Wedding Journey is a representation of the voyage into the unknown, be it marriage or a journey to foreign countries. Larissa has written a statement in poetic form to accompany the sculpture.
The Devil's soul becomes the ocean, waves grown taller, wind as Hell
Lonely, white boat in open waters, what is it trying to reveal?
Lonely white boat in stormy waters, what is it trying to achieve?
Boat fights big waves to a blue horizon, to happy shores, for fulfilment of Dream.
In Australia Larissa created a number monumental sculptures for public spaces.
For the last 17 years Larissa has been developing her own Sculpture Garden, 'The Garden of Eden'.