About Daria Startseva

I’m a contemporary artist and designer based in Zurich. I studied at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna and originally come from a background in art direction and illustration. I’ve spent many years working in the field of graphic design.

My work combines figurative realism with a poetic sense of reduction. I’m drawn to fleeting moments, to being fully present, to the emotional space between thought and sensation, to the intimacy of being – and to the quiet resonance between image and viewer. When I paint, I’m less concerned with narrative and more with emotional atmosphere. My visual language is shaped by composition, light, and clarity – but also by intuition and emotion. I follow color – not only with my eyes, but with the feeling it evokes within me. What matters most to me is presence, the brushstrokes, textures, irregularities - these marks are expressions of personality and humanity. They allow the work to breathe – making it tangible, honest, vulnerable, and alive.

"My art is about the here and now – a state of presence in which light, color, and form become tangible."