OIL ON CANVAS BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA Richard Mravik was born in the city of Nove Zamky, Slovakia, with Hungarian descent. When he turned 18, he was required to enter into military service for the Slovak army for 18 months. When released from duty, he returned to his job as a mechanic. In his spare time he painted. He is a self-taught artist and has painted since he was 20 years old. His talent for capturing reality and bringing it to life led to commissioned works, including portraits of pets and children. However it was his interest in nature that fed his desire to keep painting.In 1999 he came to Canada and was rapidly introduced to the North American art scene. He has traveled across central and western Canada, camping the wilderness province by province, to acquaint himself with Canada's natural heritage. He plans to continue traveling throughout Canada, for further inspiration. The constantly changing nature surrounding him is the infinite source for his inspiration. He enjoys combining different elements to create his work. With the use of oil as a medium and only 6 colours (white, yellow, red, brown, blue and black), the colours are mixed into desired shades to bring his subjects to life. He lives with his wife in British Columbia, close to local waterways and wildlife parks, where he can often be found quietly finding his subjects through the underbrush, or heading along a trail to find his next inspiration.