Marin Kocalev, in the 1st picture, was born in Stip, Macedonia on February 2, 1958. He graduated from the fine art academy at the Saints Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje in 1985 in Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting and worked as a professor of fine arts in various educational institutions. He then went to Paris, France for 1 year for post graduate studies of fine art. Marin has had multiple solo as well as group exhibitions, and has attended numerous art colonies. He has a special interest and affinity in portraits, still lives and oil painting techniques. His art bears strong influence from the old Dutch masters, such as Rembrandt, Vermeer and others. In 1999, Marin moved to Toronto, Canada, where he lives with his family to this day.
Violeta, in the 2nd picture, was born on November 12, 1968, in Stip, Macedonia. She graduated from the fine art academy at the Saints Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje in 1991 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and a minor in Pedagogy and Fashion Design. She then proceeded to work as an art teacher and freelance artist from 1994 to 1999, before moving to Toronto, Canada, where she resides with her family to this day. She specializes in still lives but is also proficient in portraits and landscapes, but is also able to do fashion design and jewelry design work. In her free time she enjoys dabbling with video production and making fantastical compilations with epic music.
We paint still lives that include elements such as flowers, vases, cloth, books, fruit, skulls and other inanimate objects.
We paint life sized portraits in the style of the old Dutch masters, that will capture the character as well as provide a realistic yet artistic touch to honor the memory of a loved one.
We paint majestic landscapes of rivers, valleys, mountains, lakes, trees, forests, paths, shrubbery, sunsets and urban motifs.
"Marince painted for me a portrait that really had my beauty shine, and I am glad I went with an experienced, academy educated professional as opposed to an amateur hobby artist."
"I bought a landscape of some mountains and a meadow, a place that I had visited while on vacation in Italy near Lake Como. Marince managed to capture the character of the landscape so well that I actually felt as if I was there looking at the painting."
"Violeta drew for me portraits of my children, and they are better than taking actual photos! So much life and spirit in these drawings, it's absolutely amazing."
