Artists Statement

MATZUBA is the combined creative energies of both Motoi Matsukura and Mikhail Dzuba. With a focus on the natural beauty in the Vancouver area and around southern British Columbia, we capture landscape images by camera that inspire us to transform photography into hand painted works of art. Our painting style is realism achieved through layering digital prints with acrylic washes and fine brush strokes to attain the accurate, detailed, unembellished depiction of nature. People compare our works to looking out a window upon an actual view. Most paintings are in large format.

We are motivated by the Japanese term 森林浴 Shinrin-yoku (taking in the forest atmosphere or forest bathing). We believe nature heals. It comforts, conveys harmony, and relieves stress. It is this restorative notion that encourages us to create works that help soothe our being, balance our busy lives and bring more of the natural world into our interior spaces. 

Motoi Matsukura grew up in Japan and has an eye for Japanese aesthetics which highly influences the style of his photography. His passion for capturing moments of everyday life with a camera began over twenty years ago when he willingly immigrated to Canada. His expression of images was a way to easily communicate without the complexity of using language. Motoi’s photographic images are appreciated for their vivid richness of colour, strong composition and simple exquisiteness. Click here to view a broader collection of Motoi’s photography.