With hopes of one day seeing her work being exhibited in a New York City gallery, for now, local artist Daniela Starostecka revels in the proud delight of being able to showcase her work at Melville-based ERF350.
Her artwork, which is all done by pen, mainly depicts the beautiful Joburg skyline as this is what excites her. “I grew up in Johannesburg and it signifies home to me. It’s a familiar and stable presence in my life.”
Earlier in her life, Starostecka didn’t know what career path she wanted to follow, at some time considering medicine but quickly realised this would be too time-consuming for her considering she would inevitably want to spend time with her children. Even in her speediness to rule out some careers she never thought she could ever be a full-time artist.
Though some would find the idea of drawing fine art pieces with a pen intimidating, for the artist the only feeling associated with this task is love. “It’s immediate and doesn’t need mixing like paint, is not messy like charcoal and is very affordable. I don’t use expensive pens, just cheap ballpoint pens.”
Being left-handed, the only challenge Starostecka encounters is that her images may get smudged if she uses a free-flowing pen. Her work will be showcased at the Melville venue until the end of June.
Her message to young artists is to hustle! “Treat your art as your full-time business. If you can, work at least six hours a day on your art.” She also encourages them to post their art daily on social media platforms. “I make sure to post on Facebook every day and on several groups. Also, have a TikTok profile and again, post daily.
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