Maya Eventov – Artist

Born in 1964 in Leningrad (St. Petersburg), Eventov’s artistic vision was forged by rich museum scene, like Hermitage and Russian museums where she spent most of her weekends with her mother. Her work represents a sophisticated dialogue between two major movements: the vibrant, emotive palette of the Post-Impressionists (Matisse, Gauguin, Renoir) and the structural discipline of the Russian Avant-Garde (Rodchenko, Lissitzki, Malevich).

Her formal training began at age six, leading to her graduation in 1987 with a Master’s Degree in Graphic Art from the prestigious St. Petersburg State Academy of Industrial and Applied Art. Before immigrating she worked as book illustrator and created murals for entertainment venues.

Maya immigrated to Canada in 1990, where she continues to live surrounded by her family, now grown to include grandchildren who have brought new joy and meaning to her life and work. Her style has evolved significantly over the decades, a change she attributes to the happy, safe, and secure life she discovered in North America. Yet her artistic vision has never stood still. Her body of work spans an expansive range: richly layered floral compositions, abstract landscapes alive with movement and color, figurative works exploring the grace of ballerinas and musicians, evocative nudes, pure abstractions, and an ever-growing series of new innovations such as a sculpture series. Across every series, her works are designed to evoke feelings of well-being and the joy of life, inviting viewers into moments of warmth, beauty, and quiet emotional resonance.

In 2013, Maya was the recipient of the Women in Leadership Award, presented by Pioneers for Change (Skills for Change) and CIBC. This distinction was conferred in recognition of her significant contributions to the Canadian arts and her commitment to elevating the visibility and achievements of the immigrant community within the national cultural landscape.

Eventov’s style is immediately recognizable for its intense physical dimension. Through a progressive blending of pigments and a succession of different-sized palette knives, she achieves a “wet-on-wet” sculptural effect. Her signature tree-scapes and floral meadows mimic the organic, knotted surfaces of nature.

Maya’s work is represented in hundreds of premier galleries across North America and Great Britain.

Distinguished Collections

• Heads of State: Former U.S. President George W. Bush & Barbara Bush, Former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien.
• Museums: Museum of Biblical Art (Dallas), Algonquin Art Centre (Algonquin)
• Business & Media: Robert Herjavec (ABC’s Shark Tank), and Spencer Kelly (Host of BBC Click), Matt Mullenweg (WordPress) and Canadian jazz legend Oscar Peterson.
• Corporate: CIBC (Toronto), EDS Headquarters (Plano, TX), Waddell & Reed Building (Kansas), David Braley Research Institute (Hamilton), Peller Estates Vineries (St. Catharines), JW Marriott Fairmont (Muskoka), INGRA Financial Group, Sheraton Hotel (London).

Cultural & Cinematic Resonance

• Film: Hallmark Channel’s Double Holiday and An Ice Palace Romance, and Cara Takes Up Space.
• Television: BBC Click and an upcoming TVO series.