…First of all, you really need to study as deeply as you can all the classical art. Not only in your art school, but go yourself if you can to all the museums possible and connect yourself with the fundamentals. This is like food — you cannot avoid this, in my opinion. You can be very talented, have great ideas, but this thing you cannot avoid. You need to connect with the artists who existed before you 500 years ago, 300 years ago, 100 years ago. Go and see them in museums and their galleries and spend time with them. This is extremely important and irreplaceable for the artist. So, travel and study as much as possible. This is the first thing…
I had the distinct pleasure of talking with Eva Lanska. In the bustling heart of Tel Aviv, a city known for its vibrant culture and history, a new chapter in the world of art and luxury is being written with the launch of The L Gallery. Spearheaded by filmmaker and visual artist Eva Lanska, the gallery emerges as a beacon of creativity and sophistication, offering a fresh perspective on contemporary art amidst the backdrop of regional conflict.
The L Gallery is nestled in Tel Aviv’s historic center, occupying a prime location that blends architectural splendor with artistic innovation. Designed by the acclaimed architect Pitsou Kedem, the gallery’s space is an architectural marvel in itself, featuring soaring ceilings and expansive windows that flood the interiors with natural light. This setting serves as a dynamic canvas for the gallery’s ambitious vision, which is to redefine luxury in the art world and offer a sanctuary for both established and emerging artists.
Eva Lanska’s role as chief curator is pivotal in shaping the gallery’s direction. An award-winning director and artist, Lanska brings a unique blend of cinematic narrative and visual artistry to the curatorial practice. Under her guidance, The L Gallery is not just a space for displaying art but a platform for storytelling and innovation. Lanska’s vision extends beyond the local scene, with plans to open additional locations in Monaco and London, further cementing the gallery’s global footprint.
The gallery’s inaugural collection features a diverse array of artists, including Ruby Batarnon, Yuval Bezalel, Sam Griffin, Dror Hibsh, and Or Shloman, whose works span traditional and digital mediums. This eclectic mix not only showcases the gallery’s commitment to diversity but also its ambition to push the boundaries of what art can be.
Beyond its artistic endeavors, The L Gallery is deeply committed to social responsibility. Its Arts for Charity initiative allows patrons to purchase works by established artists, with proceeds benefiting various charitable causes. This innovative approach to philanthropy underscores the gallery’s belief in the power of art to effect change and foster community.
Lanska’s reflections on her work and the current situation in Tel Aviv highlight a deep resilience and optimism. Despite the challenges posed by the regional conflict, Lanska and her colleagues remain dedicated to their mission, motivated by the hope and perseverance of the artists they represent. Their goal is not just to survive but to thrive, expanding their presence both online and in physical spaces, and welcoming artists and audiences from across the globe.
In her art, Lanska seeks harmony and beauty, qualities that resonate deeply with her both personally and professionally. Her journey as an artist and filmmaker has been marked by a relentless pursuit of perfection and a desire to uncover beauty in the most unexpected places. This philosophy, coupled with her commitment to showcasing a diverse range of artistic voices, positions The L Gallery as a significant new player on the global art stage.
As The L Gallery opens its doors to the world, it stands as a testament to the enduring power of art to inspire, challenge, and unite. In the words of Lanska, the gallery is not just a space for viewing art but a beacon of hope, offering a glimpse of what is possible when creativity, resilience, and vision come together.
Eva, it’s a pleasure and honor to meet you. Before we dive deep, our readers would love to learn about where things started. We’d love to learn about your childhood and how you grew up.
Wow, you said you were going to ask difficult questions, but I think for each artist, this is the most difficult question. Well, let me tell you one thing. When I was in London, training with many actors, there was a group of 20 people because, you see, my main thing is being a film director.
So, I am always trying whenever I can to take courses with actors, to understand them from the inside. And I also practice as an actor.
So, you probably know this topic very well because you come from the United States,, and you know what this is about. But, the bottom line is, we did a lot of teamwork with different actors. And I noticed, and everybody probably knows this, that making people cry is much easier than making people smile, with any kind of art — films, paintings, or any other form.
So, what I want to say by this, coming back to childhood, when you’re talking to an artist, each of them, their decision to become an artist or actor in this field, it’s all because of some kind of childhood trauma.
It doesn’t matter if you come from an amazing family or a family that is not doing well. Each of these persons I met in the acting class was traumatized when they were a kid.
Some of them were seriously traumatized, and for them, becoming a professional actor, really wanting to play roles in films; this is the way to communicate with the world, and secondly, to heal themselves.
So, I kind of connected to this message, and when I noticed this with my colleagues, I felt what it means.
Yeah, I don’t remember many, many things, but it was a completely different time. I don’t know how old you are, but we were not capable of using our mobile phones every day.
So, I can tell you, I kind of feel happy about all this because the changes that you and I faced during the last 20 years, notice that it’s dramatic. Nobody else before, hundreds and hundreds and three hundred years ago, ever saw progress come so quickly. Every single day you wake up in a different world, to be honest, and maybe we are kind of lucky to see this.
But coming back to my childhood, I think I grew up for the first 10 years in Russia at a time when it was becoming a completely different world, I woke up and I was in capitalism. I take this as a good sign because this is what makes me stronger, and gives me a lot of desire and power to wish to change the world for the better because I saw very poor people, I saw very rich people, I saw people who were struggling and battling for their life each single day, just to survive. So, this gave me energy, it made me strong.
Amazing. Can you share a bit about how you became an artist and an art curator? How did that start?
Well, I can tell you directly, I was always connected to art from a very early age, from five years old when I first remember myself. I didn’t imagine anything else, but you know, art is not just a career, being an artist is a way of life for me. This is your personality. You cannot wake up at 7 am and tell yourself, “OK, today I’m an artist until 7 pm, and after that, I’ll do my other stuff.” No, this is your life, this is your second skin. So, well, this is, I think, who I am.
It took me time to find out and discover the tools where I’m strongest, to express myself as an artist. So, I was educated as a film director and also for five years as a journalist. For me, it was a way to take all this knowledge, to understand where I’m more powerful, stronger.
When I was very young, about seven years old, my biggest dream was one day to come to Los Angeles and become a famous actress. I was thinking, it would become my everything, my only goal. But with time and trying many different things, like being a singer, which I’ve been, and I am. I was writing, I have five books published, I did four films, I have 50 awards for the films. This was my way to, you know, understand where I’m stronger, to change the world for the better.
And when I started studying and doing filmmaking, I understood this is me. Unfortunately, I would not be an actress. I needed to take this path. It was a hard decision, but I understood for myself, I am strong as a film director, I can give more compared to being an actress. Of course, acting is also beautiful, but it’s completely something else. You need to use another part of your body and your personality. So this was my decision. A difficult decision, by the way.
So if we come back to fine art, I have done art myself from a very young age, from school. And the idea to become an art curator came from meeting artists all the time. And I learned about art. I spent most of the last 15 years in London. London, it is art. This is, for me, the capital of art. Well, forgive me, but this sort of thing, London and Paris, I lived between both. It’s just absolutely not possible for me as an artist not to take everything from these most important countries, in terms of art.
So, every day I had a chance to learn, to go to the best exhibitions, to see the best art in the world. So this is how I came to art and because I do art myself, I am meeting different kinds of artists at all these exhibitions. And it came naturally for me, I want to support them. I’m happy to bring them somewhere, give them advice, and receive advice. This is my personality.
So this is how it started, almost 15 years ago. Before, you know, we had less politics in the world, if you remember. Art was booming, you know, and all these new artists were coming on the scene and trying to make changes. You cannot ignore this. So I also became part of it. So I’m still going along with this, even though the times are changing. But I think art is still going to be of great importance.
So you have such a fascinating background, you know, being a journalist, a filmmaker, a musician, an artist, and an actress. Can you share one or two of your most interesting and favorite memories, favorite experiences?
As a child, I spent a lot of time in nature. I saw wild animals and birds in the forest. I saw the taiga, wolves coming at night to the houses of peacefully sleeping residents. With the patience that only a carefree child has, I followed the life of insects and made sketches. All these memories are still part of me and for example — the theme of flowers became the main one in my new exhibition which will open in June in Tel Aviv.
OK, I love hearing stories about somebody who opened the door or created an opportunity where they didn’t have to, and that had an impact on someone’s life, that changed someone’s life. Do you have a story about somebody who went out of their way and impacted your career or your life because of that kindness?
Well, you know, for me, and I think it works for many different kinds of people. Sometimes if somebody comes into your life and tells you supportive words at the right moment, this is a game-changing moment for you. So thank God, in my life, there were a lot of people like that.
Doubt is inherent in the creative process and if someone comes into your life and speaks words of encouragement to you at the right moment, believes in you, this is a career-defining moment for you.
So thank God, there were a lot of such people in my life. The actors with whom I was able to work on the set came up to me after filming and spoke with gratitude, saying they were inspired and charged by our joint work. But the main person was my mother — as a child. She always praised my painting and I have never heard anything negative from her. This gave me incredible strength for future achievements.
But, you know, I became this person at that moment, because when you are a young artist and you’re just starting your career, you question yourself quite often. Believe me, no matter how huge your talent is, you question yourself in the morning and specifically during the night — “Am I good enough for this thing? Is this what I need to spend my life doing?”, you know? And many people give up because they don’t have somebody close by who’s going to tell them, “Listen, you are the best, you are really special. Your talent is significant for this world. Please continue.”
So many people lose their opportunities, and we lose artists like this. So I decided to become this person myself. I have the opportunity to talk with journalists. I have the possibility to address myself to the artists around me. So I can give this message.
I remember my mom told me this once, a very long time ago when I brought her a little flower that I had made — this was, you know, a very small design, just a sketch. And she was a very busy woman, but she told me, “Listen, wow, this is such an amazing, beautiful picture.” Maybe it wasn’t even that beautiful, but I took it seriously and I told myself I’m going to continue. It doesn’t matter, look how my mom expressed herself, you know.
So I think you and I, we need to do this because we chose this job. We have this gift to talk to people and this is, well, we need to continue, right?
OK, can you share with our readers some of the exciting projects you’re working on now? What are you doing now? What will you be working on in the future?
Look, the situation now is not very clear in Tel Aviv. And, you know, people kind of start to have a habit of living in this huge amount of stress. They were living in stress before, but now the stress is 10 times more.
And unfortunately for me, because I came to Tel Aviv not long ago, I never grew up with these kinds of feelings, you know. Unfortunately for me, it has become normal to live not just in stress, but for me an impossible amount of stress.
So people are trying to do their best from both sides, as far as I can see. And the artists, some of them lost their homes. Some of them cannot go back to the studio anymore because it’s in the border area where the actions are happening now. But, you know, we motivate each other just by our existence. When I see the artists continuing, they have their hope. One day it will become normal again. It gives me extra power to also go ahead.
We have a plan with my colleagues and friends to continue. And, you know, we’re not planning to close, but to develop online and in physical spaces as well, and take on as many artists as possible.
And of course, we also plan to do exhibitions, bring people and artists from abroad. We would like to show them. Journalists need to see how it’s working at the moment in real life, you know, not only to judge the situation from another country.I would be very happy if people, journalists, can come again and see from the center of Tel Aviv, from the perspective of positivity and beauty and art, what is really going on.
So it’s extremely important for me. We’re planning to open the gallery. And of course, the Israeli audience, Israeli collectors, are most welcome. They are expecting a lot of guests.
But as I told you, I would love to see the first people who come back, see and take the decision, and distribute the information from the place around the whole world — ask “what is this?” and not judge Israel from another country or any kind of country. I’m quite against this.
I think if you would like to tell your opinion, if you would like to make an article, you need to go to the country you’re talking about, investigate inside. And then, please do. Openly, freely, tell what you think, what thoughts you can see with your own eyes, and then talk. This is what I think.
Where do you get inspiration from? And can you share a story about that?
Strong people inspire me. For example, there is a photo on my wall at home of Michael Jordan taken by Walter Iooss Jr. He is one of them. .Motivated people inspire me a lot. Imagine how many minutes, hours and days of hard training are behind his success. It’s amazing: the energy, the way he handles the ball, how confident he is in his goal, how he motivates himself to get back into the game again, again, again.
Because these people first of all follow the discipline itself. And this is one of the main qualities of a professional, I think.
No matter how big or small your talent — discipline is something you need to have within yourself or build within yourself if you don’t have it. This is a quality you can develop. So when you have discipline, everything else is possible. When you have discipline and love to learn. These two things.
Talent comes and goes, we know that. Because it’s energy, it’s a blessing. Discipline and the ability to educate yourself will remain with you forever.
So Michael Jordan, he is one of the first people who inspires me to battle every single day with all the things that are not going well, and helps me to continue onward.
I’m sure you get this question a lot. But what are your thoughts about the emergence of AI and art?
Wow, this is an amazing question. I think we need to talk about this much more than we do because here with what has arrived now in our life, it raises a lot of questions — juridical questions, you know, many kinds. And it’s difficult to find the right answer because this is not developed enough yet to see where it’s going.
But for me, a piece of art, any kind, is a reflection of your soul. And that’s never going to change. So is this a way of producing art? Good AI can collect different reflections of different souls, put them together. This question is not for me. This is a question for our future. If the capacity to create this becomes so high and it becomes possible, who knows, why not?
But at this stage of today, I think this has not happened yet. And I personally don’t think in the near future, maybe two or three years, but I would like to invest in this. Or I can advise my collectors or anybody or my artists to invest their capital in this. But who knows? I think it should be developed much more before we’re talking about serious investments.
And when you’re talking to collectors, you know, I can tell you a story. I was speaking with an art director, art curator, and also the director of the department of one of the biggest auction houses in the world, and we were looking at modern art, very expensive, amazing modern art. He was a young man, so I asked him, “You are so young and you have such big experience, you are the director of a department of the biggest auction house. So just give me please, one art piece. It’s modern art, we need to be very clear what he is looking for. Give me one piece that you want to have in your home. Now, it doesn’t matter the price, the size, or anything. It’s going to be delivered tomorrow. You are the owner.”
And he looked at me and said, “Goya”. This is the answer. And this is the person who is looking and checking every single day, thousands of different kinds of very expensive, amazing, very modern paintings and art pieces.
So I think the essential things will be important in the market, in cultural society forever because there was a big soul, the person who created them. If you ask me which piece, doesn’t matter what, I want to have in my house, I will be very honest. All my work, for example, the collection of the ballerinas, I’ve been inspired by Da Vinci. I don’t think you can replace him. You can take a piece of him and create by artificial intelligence some kind of interesting art, but it is never going to be Da Vinci because you just took from someone by inspiration with a little piece of his energy, but you’re not becoming him.
I like when people are inspired by big things, but when they’re inspired by big talents, they are still themselves. And their goal is to find something unique in themselves, based fundamentally on the talent that big artists have already created before.
So I’m not sure at the moment, I just don’t know if artificial intelligence has the capacity to do this, to replace this. This is my answer. We need to see what’s going to happen. But at this moment, it should be developed more to have a conclusion.
One question that artists are struggling with is AI can copy the style of a certain artist. There’s a particular artist, Greg Rutkowski, who didn’t like that there were so many copies of his work. If you Google his name, you don’t know what he actually created versus what’s a copy, and it dilutes his original work. So he feels frustrated that people copy his work using AI so often that it’s hard to distinguish what he truly created from the copies. It’s like it dilutes the artistic environment.
Wow, I understand. I think he needs to be proud. This is only my comment: if people copy you, it means you’ve become yourself. And this is what every artist dreams about — you’ve achieved your dream; you know who you are. If somebody wants to copy you, this is evidence that you are unique.
And for each single artist, I think this is a dramatic moment in life. If they cannot find how they’re different, what they do differently from other groups of artists, they must exist and search deeper. Try, as I mentioned before, all the different tools until the moment you feel, “Yes, here I feel comfortable, here I feel like myself. This is me in good dialogue with myself.” This is the biggest reward of doing art because each artist is always in dialogue with themselves and their audience. Even when not physically present, when you create a painting or art installation, you’re talking to people in that single moment. So I think it’s a huge privilege to be copied.
So as you know, there’s always the stereotype of the struggling artist, the starving artist. I know a lot of talented artists, but you know, they’re not well-known. Is it luck that makes an artist become discovered or what can an artist do to become discovered and for people to really appreciate their work and talent? Like what can artists do to be found?
Well, to be honest, today there are a lot of opportunities for artists today — much more than, say, 10–15 years ago. We can’t complain. Of course, social media definitely helps. I know several galleries in London, and all their curators do from morning to evening is look for artists through social networks and offer to represent them, show them in London or Europe and sell their works. Over time, artists become less dependent on the gallery. But, of course, having a physical space where people come specifically for the purpose of discovering new names makes everything much easier. So, you know, the Internet today opens many new doors. However, I can tell you that being represented in a very famous gallery is still not an easy path. The world’s top 10 galleries schedule exhibitions three years in advance and have a very limited list of its artists, but nothing is easy in life. You need, no matter what, to believe in yourself and this is the only rule. Continue to create — drive away doubts and without stopping for a second. And of course, show your art wherever you can.
This is evidenced by artists who achieved success 20 or 40 years ago when social media was not available, simply because they wanted to get noticed. We still have these examples now, of course.
For example, the famous artist Charles Bell, first received a bachelor’s degree in business administration. Then he served in the US Navy for two years and only in 1932 he moved to New York and founded his own art studio. Claes Oldenburg, not having found a gallery who would represent him,opened one where he showed his art, which did not stop him from receiving the US National Medal of the Arts in 2000.
Let us remember the magnificent Yves Klein, whose main art tool was his sharp and inventive mind.
His performances were picked up by newspapers; he was so original in his work that he did without a gallerist. The list of names is quite long, all of them are united by the fact that they did not give up and continued to do art.
So I hope our gallery will be one place where artists can develop themselves, find themselves and their place in the art world. You need to become part of the art society too. You know, I was at the Cannes Film Festival a few years ago at a conference with many filmmakers. And one young filmmaker, a director who couldn’t find a budget for his fifth film, he asked someone very famous in the film industry, “What’s the way to become like you — famous, have a big budget and do lots of films, become successful?” And the answer was very clear — “You need to become part of the family of the film industry.” I mean family in the broad understanding of this word. You need to connect yourself with the people and become part of it. It takes a lot of time. So I can give the same example for the art world. You need to become part of the art community on a serious, international level. And I hope our gallery is going to give young artists the chance to become part of the international art family. I really hope so.
This is our signature question that we ask in all our interviews. Ilya, you’ve been blessed with a lot of success now. Looking back to when you first started, can you share five things that you need to create a successful career as an artist? For somebody who’s looking to explore that industry, can you share five things you need to create a successful career as an artist?
Well, I’m going to be not very original, but I will be practical and effective with my advice.
- So, I think to become a very successful artist, first of all, you really need to study as deeply as you can all the classical art. Not only in your art school, but go yourself if you can to all the museums possible and connect yourself with the fundamentals. This is like food — you cannot avoid this, in my opinion. You can be very talented, have great ideas, but this thing you cannot avoid. You need to connect with the artists who existed before you 500 years ago, 300 years ago, 100 years ago. Go and see them in museums and their galleries and spend time with them. This is extremely important and irreplaceable for the artist. So, travel and study as much as possible. This is the first thing.
- The second thing, we already started to discuss this a little bit. When you do art, you see some very successful artists and they’re dynamic at the same time as you. They work in the studio and they’re selling immediately, straight away, and you’re working the same amount of time. You believe everything you do is right, but you’re not selling. It’s also very important, I think, to try to find out where you’re the best and keep going. Don’t try to copy anybody. Maybe it’s going to take a little bit more time for you to become financially successful or successful in any way, but you will be in the condition if you don’t betray yourself, because the temptation is here. It’s coming every single day, because we all know some kind of commercial things and tricks — “Would you do this and you attract more audience?” Yes, but it’s not going to stay for a long time. If you would like to become a part of history in the future one day, you need to be yourself and keep your style, and this is why you will be recognizable one day. You need to be different, and the way to be different is to be yourself, nobody else. This is second, and this is also very difficult, believe me, when you’re an artist.
- But try to meet as many people as you can from our community. Travel to art exhibitions, be open, be strong and meet people. Tell people about you, about your art, and also ask people about them. This communication is very helpful.
- One more very important thing. Be grateful for what you have. It’s very important because it sounds very simple, but this keeps your discipline and your talent with you. Every single day, find something good and say thank you for it in your life.
- And work a lot. This is my number five advice. Why? You can take it a little bit with a smile because art galleries will like it when you have a lot of work to show. So when you have a lot to present, you have much more chance to be taken by the gallery.
Beautiful. This is our final question, Eva. Because of your great work and the platform that you’ve built, you’re a person of great influence. If you could spread an idea or inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
Well, this is not for our interview, but if I can do this, I would become a rabbi, you know. So I’m going to leave it to you. Really, this is your role. This is not mine.
If you could take all of your art and put it in one bucket, what would be the overarching message or energy that comes out of your art?
Well, for me, it will be harmonious. This is the word — harmony. And I am a person who can see the beauty in everything. I like to find the beauty in things where you may not see it at first. When I’m filming, for example, as a film director, you can give me any actor and I can make them shine. It doesn’t matter who. I can find their angle to show their character and beauty. Same with all my art. Harmony — this is what I look for and beauty in the big world. This is what I think I have the capacity to find. It took me a long time to understand where I’m at my best. I made five films. I wrote six books. Because as an artist, I wanted to know where I could deliver the best for this world. And I realized from the critics, from people talking to me, people crying when they saw my video installation at the Venice Biennale — they see the beauty inside and perfectionism. I know this is not the word that sometimes describes the art world at the moment. But this is what I’m looking for.
Amazing. So how can the readers continue to follow your work? How can they purchase any of your work? How could they support what you’re doing in any way?
Well, they can search “Eva Lanska” on Google and they will see our amazing galleries, called The L Gallery. They will also see some of my art. I think this is the best way to follow me and my endeavours.
Amazing. Well, Eva, it’s been such a delight and an honor to meet you.
Yes, yes. Thank you.
Eva Lanska Of The L Gallery: Five Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful Career As An Artist was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.