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Between Classical Painting and Digital Art: An Interview with Marzena Kowalczyk
Marzena Kowalczyk creates paintings, illustrations, and sketches in which nature meets emotion, stillness, and storytelling. She works both traditionally, on paper and canvas, and digitally using a drawing tablet. In this Artist Spotlight interview for OneDollarStock, she discusses her creative process, artistic mistakes, inspiration, traditional painting, digital tools, and why an image can sometimes communicate more than a realistic photograph. At OneDollarStock, we often talk about images in the context of design, content creation, digital products, graphics, presets, templates, and creative tools. But behind every strong image, whether it is created on canvas, paper, a drawing tablet, or a computer screen, there is something far more important than the tool itself: a way of seeing. That is why we invited Marzena Kowalczyk, an artist working between traditional painting and digital illustration, to join us for a conversation. Her work offers an opportunity to discuss nature, emotions, sketches, mistakes, creative blocks, and what contemporary digital creators can learn from classical painting. We did not want this to be a rigid interview about an “artistic career.” Instead, we wanted an honest conversation about how an image is created, what happens before the finished work appears, and why choosing the wrong color can sometimes hurt more than receiving a simple “nice” comment. 1. Your work moves between nature, emotion, and storytelling. What usually comes first: an image in your mind, a specific place, or a feeling you cannot yet name? It is always a feeling triggered by a particular view or memory. It is as though I live, collect experiences, observe, and then, at some point, the dots suddenly connect. The image that emerges is my attempt to transfer that feeling. I do everything I can to reflect it as faithfully as possible, using every available means. 2. Can a painting be more truthful than a photograph, even when it depicts something less realistically? The question is: what does “truthful” mean? To me, a painting is more of a carrier of feelings than a precise, realistic representation of reality. It is more subjective and personal than a photograph. Everyone sees differently. Perhaps it is not exactly about comparing how different people see the world. It is more about sending a signal: “This is how I experience it. Perhaps you do too?” It can also be about awakening someone’s ability to feel, because it is possible to look without really seeing. Sometimes I can pass the same tree one hundred times, only to notice something special about it on the one hundred and first. I can then paint it and emphasize that quality so that someone else can notice it more easily. I can do that through color, composition, or any number of other artistic devices. I can paint a meadow, but not simply to show what a meadow looks like. I want the viewer to look at the painting and feel, “This is exactly how I feel when I am standing in a meadow.” That is essentially why I paint nature. Someone may not have the opportunity or energy to go for a walk in the forest, but looking at a painting is easy. Perhaps it will remind them of how they felt the last time they were in the forest and encourage them to take that walk. 3. Drawing tablet or paper: which one forgives mistakes more easily, and which one makes it clear that there is no room for error? A drawing tablet obviously forgives more mistakes. When I draw on paper, I often miss the undo function. Not everything can be erased, and sometimes you have to start over even though parts of the previous version were very successful. There is no such problem on a drawing tablet. A risky color? Create a new layer and keep going. Then there is the magical undo button, and the paper does not get damaged. However, the feeling of painting on paper cannot be replaced. Perhaps the risk that the work can easily be damaged by one careless movement makes the creative process even more intense. That is why I combine both methods. I use a tablet to plan the sketch because I can modify it easily and design the composition. I then continue on paper or canvas, allowing myself to move into the unknown. At this point, that process works best for me. 4. What do you think people creating digital projects can learn from classical painting? Digital painting offers slightly different possibilities. The visual effect of painting with real, thick paint that smells of linseed oil is different from painting with a digital brush in Procreate. The fundamental principles of creating an image remain the same: composition, color, light, anatomy, and so on. I think people who work exclusively in digital media can learn from the texture of traditional paint or the accidental way watercolor spreads across paper. At the same time, I sometimes work entirely digitally, and it is simply a different medium. Just as oil paint produces a different result from watercolor, digital painting has its own distinct qualities. 5. What is the most difficult thing for you to paint: light, nature, the human figure, stillness, or emotions? The most difficult moment is when I desperately wanted to communicate something, worked on it for a long time, and then felt disappointed by the result because I could not see what I had wanted to express. At that point, I do not know whether I should continue trusting the process or whether a light will eventually appear at the end of the tunnel. It can happen with anything: light, nature, the human figure, stillness, or emotions. You only discover it during the process. 6. What do you do when a painting goes in a completely different direction from the one you intended? Do you fight it, let it go, paint over it, or pretend that was the plan? It is different every time. I think it depends on how important the message I wanted to communicate was to me. Sometimes I accept what I have created. When the client is satisfied too, that can occasionally be enough. I do not pretend it was the plan, because the artistic process never goes entirely according to plan. When the final result is certain and predictable, it is no longer an artistic process. Sometimes, however, I obsessively start again because I can sense beneath the surface that it will eventually work. I try not to repaint the same piece indefinitely because, after several revisions, a painting can begin to look tired. It is difficult to know when to tell yourself to stop. As the saying goes, “A painting is never finished, only abandoned.” 7. If your sketches could speak, would they be more likely to say “finish me” or “leave me alone”? I think they constantly say, “Finish me. Work on me for just a little longer. Give me a few more lines.” However, I am usually not satisfied with the result when I listen to them. My sketches are better and lighter when I abandon them at a certain point. Of course, I have plenty of unfinished works and ideas that I have started. Their time will eventually come. 8. What do you do when you lack inspiration for an extended period? Do you actively search for it, wait for it, or simply sit down and work anyway? I do not really experience a lack of inspiration. I return from every walk with at least two ideas for a painting. I choose very carefully which ideas deserve an investment of my time. I usually make a quick sketch or write the idea down. When I still like it after some time has passed, I know it is worth developing. It is also important not to leave it waiting for too long because I may forget the feeling that accompanied it. I take photographs, but they do not capture that feeling. I have to rely on my notes and memory. I also separate the creative role from the practical work of execution. The concepts already exist and appear spontaneously. But I always sit down to work in the morning and continue until a designated time. There is no magical spark involved. I sit down whether I am tired, excited, sad, or happy. When my working hours end, I put down my brushes and return to everyday life, my home, and my family. It is very useful to walk away from the easel while still feeling that you want to do a little more. 9. What is the biggest lie about working as an artist that people still like to repeat? There are many of them. People often say, “Do what you love, and you will never work a day in your life.” What nonsense. You have to work extremely hard to make a living from what you love. Another misconception is that talent is something you are simply born with. Of course, some people have certain predispositions that help them observe closely or stay focused on one pursuit for years. Autism can be one example. But that is what talent really is: practicing one thing for years. It is more than passion. It can become an obsession, although hopefully within reasonably healthy boundaries. 10. What hurts an artist more: a blank page, a poorly chosen color, or someone commenting “nice”? The comment “nice” does not hurt me at all. I appreciate that someone made an effort and expressed their approval of my work in the best way they could. As for a blank page, even my desk is covered in drawings. I do not remember ever sitting in front of an empty page for very long. I always doodle something. It is not necessarily good, and what hurts much more is wasting yet another sheet of paper. A poorly chosen color, however, can ruin a painting. It is slightly less of a problem when the work is created on a tablet. 11. If you had to paint a deadline, what would it look like? It would look like a wall, a dam, or a solid barrier with a door in it. A deadline determines how far my creative process is allowed to run wild. I do not treat deadlines as something inherently negative. In fact, I need to establish certain boundaries so that I do not remain stuck on one thing for too long. Otherwise, it is easy to begin moving in circles without producing better results. A reasonable deadline allows me to close the open tabs in my mind and open the door to the next project. 12. What is the most absurd thing that has ever inspired one of your drawings or paintings? I do not know whether anything can truly be considered absurd when it comes to inspiration. A dream, a mess, bones found along the way, gold left over from a previous painting, a client’s fantasy, a deer, a tree, or bare feet in the snow. The last one was supposed to be healthy, although not when you have Raynaud’s syndrome. What Digital Creators Can Learn from Traditional Painting One simple but important thought remains after speaking with Marzena: tools change, but the way we see remains essential. A drawing tablet, paper, a brush, a screen, a photograph, a sketch, and a finished illustration are simply different routes toward the same destination: an image capable of making someone feel something. This is particularly important for digital creators. In a world of rapidly produced graphics, ready-made templates, and images generated in seconds, it is easy to forget that strong composition, color, light, and emotion still require attention and awareness. Classical painting does not have to be the opposite of digital creativity. It can be one of its most valuable foundations. About Marzena Kowalczyk Marzena Kowalczyk is an artist and illustrator who works both digitally and traditionally. Her work combines nature, emotion, storytelling, and a painterly way of seeing. She creates using a drawing tablet, paper, and canvas, exploring the boundary between classical techniques and contemporary visual tools. You can follow Marzena Kowalczyk’s work on Instagram at @byvisenna. OneDollarStock Artist Spotlight This interview is the first installment in a series of OneDollarStock conversations with creators who represent different approaches to working with images. We are interested not only in finished results, but also in the processes, decisions, mistakes, inspirations, and experiences that make an image stay in someone’s mind. We believe that classical painting, illustration, digital design, photography, presets, templates, and other forms of visual creativity share the same foundation: learning how to see. Conversations with artists such as Marzena are therefore a natural part of building the creative community around OneDollarStock.
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