Mermaid's Kiss – Underwater Female in Blue (2026) Original Oil Painting by Julia Shilo

The Mermaid's Kiss
Size: 40 × 60 × 2 cm (15.7 × 23.6 × 0.8 in)
Materials: Oil on canvas
Support: Stretched canvas

The Mermaid's Kiss explores the strange way memory preserves moments that seem insignificant when they happen. Among thousands of experiences, a fleeting glance, a warm afternoon, a touch, or a few seconds of unexpected tenderness can remain with us for years. We rarely understand why certain moments return, yet when they do, they carry their original warmth.

The mermaid's kiss becomes a metaphor for such a memory — something brief, almost impossible, yet impossible to forget. Her gesture suggests a moment caught between reality and imagination, where tenderness feels fleeting but leaves a lasting emotional trace.

The painting reflects on the idea that memory does not always preserve what was objectively important. It preserves what was deeply felt. A seemingly ordinary moment can become precious simply because of how it made us feel, returning unexpectedly long after the experience itself has disappeared.

The female figure is presented as an embodiment of this fleeting sensation. Surrounded by water and luminous reflections, she appears suspended between remembering and forgetting. The monochromatic blue atmosphere creates a dreamlike sense of distance, while shimmering highlights evoke the way memories sometimes surface suddenly — fragmented, softened by time, yet still emotionally vivid.

The Mermaid's Kiss is ultimately about those small, inexplicable memories we carry without knowing why. Like an encounter with a mermaid, they may be impossible to explain, but once experienced, they become part of us.

Shades

Prussian blue, cobalt blue, ultramarine, deep navy, midnight blue, blue-black, ocean blue, icy white, silver reflections, luminous blue highlights

Ideal Collector

Ideal for collectors of contemporary figurative and conceptual art who are drawn to emotional narratives, mythology, memory, nostalgia, and poetic symbolism. Particularly suited to those who appreciate artworks that evoke personal associations and quiet emotional experiences.

Ideal Space

Bedroom interior, reading room, minimalist living room, private gallery, boutique hotel, creative studio, meditation space, luxury apartment, contemporary office, intimate interior

Artistic Style and Theme

Contemporary figurative conceptual art.

Themes: memory, nostalgia, fleeting moments, emotional memory, mermaid symbolism, tenderness, imagination, feminine archetype, water symbolism, subconscious, personal memories

Materials used:

oil

Details:

• Oil painting on Canvas
• One of a kind artwork
• Size: 40 x 60 x 2cm (unframed)
• Ready to hang
• Signed certificate of authenticity
• Style: Photorealistic
• Subject: People and portraits