ABOUT

My name is Mira and Wanderlust is the promise to my father after his death. The promise that I will travel to places he could no longer reach, so he can see the world through my eyes and keep living through my art.

I am a visual arts lecturer, writer, and self-taught artist with a Greek heart based in Italy. My father’s art and travels shaped my childhood, and I began painting modern abstract art as a child—first as a hobby, later as a form of mindfulness meditation.

When I was 17, I lost my father—a passionate traveler—and turned my focus to my studies. During university I spent a year in the United States, and after completing my Master’s degree I moved to Italy, where I am currently based. As a freelance writer and visual arts lecturer, I was fortunate to travel worldwide for work. When the pandemic made travel impossible, I kept writing during the first lockdown while also got back exploring abstract art through organic materials and photography research. Since then, both have become an obsession and my own way to keep traveling.

I create abstract paintings with a touch of mystery that pull the mind into a parallel dimension. Each piece holds a hidden secret born from my curiosity about human nature in dialogue with the Universe. As an empath, some of my works channel pain and struggle into art, while others feel seen from above—as if my father can witness the world through my paintings. I’m deeply inspired by the world’s beauty, unknown cultures, visual anthropology, and cosmic mysteries like other planets or the moons of Saturn and Jupiter. Music makes my art possible, and I draw constant inspiration from Vangelis, Ennio Morricone, and others.

My paintings are the culmination of an extensive research based on unconscious symbolism, drawing inspiration from various sources including Jungian psychology, mythology, archives, and indigenous symbolism. I explore the depths of the human experience and the universal themes that connect us all, seeking to uncover the layers of meaning that reside within these powerful symbols. By studying archetypal motifs and stories from diverse cultures, I try to bring together a visual language that speaks to the viewer on an intuitive level. This process involves not only an academic approach to symbolism but also a deeply personal engagement with the emotional resonance of these visuals. My goal is to create a dialogue between the viewer and the artwork, inviting to explore empathy, understanding other cultures, contemplation and introspection.

Incorporating elements from our unconscious mind and symbols from indigenous cultures allows me to honor the spiritual connections with our nature. I approach this aspect of my work with great respect, seeking to understand and reinterpret these symbols in a way that honors their origins while integrating them into a contemporary context. This research enriches my artistic practice, resulting in paintings that are imbued with layers of a deep meaning connected to our roots. Each artwork serves as a medium for exploring the complexities of human thought, spirituality, and connection, making my work a reflection of both personal exploration and collective consciousness.

Each piece is entirely original, hand-painted with meticulous care and personally signed on the front. I work with organic materials and high-quality pigments across mixed media, including watercolors, acrylic, and oil, on canvas or handmade sculptures that are ready to hang. Layers of oil or acrylic paint are meticulously applied using brushes and palette knives. To enhance their longevity, each painting is treated with acrylic gesso and finished with a clear matte varnish, providing protection against temperature fluctuations, UV light, and moisture.

Painting for me is like I can communicate in a way with my father when I miss him, put and close my feelings inside a space, on a canvas or an experience also against depression. Mental health is the most difficult challenge an artist can experience, must be respected and valued, also I think can be healed with any form of art and the creative process behind.

At the same time I am the Creative director of www.33magazine.com and founder of KREEP. Productions. My works were published on the below magazines: I-D Italy, Fucking Young, RedMilk, Modic, Collezioni Sport & Street, Vogue Talents, ELLE Italia, L’Officiel Malaysia, Schön Magazine, Vanity Teen, RED EYE + more.

Find out more about my art here: www.mirawanderlust.com

My works + articles:: https://bio.site/mirawanderlust

Regarding any information related to my art + my work, contact me HERE .

I hope you are having a great journey, because empathy is the only way.

Mira W.