ACTIVE AGE | Ukraine native's talents include art and beauty

Nataliya Bittorf poses for a portrait in her salon in front of all her paintings she has made on Dec. 13 in Texarkana, Texas. Bittorf came to the United States in 1999 when she married her husband, who is from Texarkana. Her paintings are on wood and canvas of birds, flowers and other abstract subjects. Her goal for the new year is to turn her salon into an art gallery.
Nataliya Bittorf poses for a portrait in her salon in front of all her paintings she has made on Dec. 13 in Texarkana, Texas. Bittorf came to the United States in 1999 when she married her husband, who is from Texarkana. Her paintings are on wood and canvas of birds, flowers and other abstract subjects. Her goal for the new year is to turn her salon into an art gallery.

Nataliya Bittorf is a multi-talented native of Lviv, Ukraine.

She moved to Texarkana in 1999, when she married Texarkana resident Karl Bittorf. A graduate of the cosmetology department at Texarkana College, she is enhancing her beauty salon on College Drive with her art work.

Bittorf paints in acrylic and water colors, and now is decorating her walls with her paintings: dainty, colorful birds, bright flowers, and scenes from her native Lliv. She said her paintings are for sale and she will negotiate the price.

Growing up in Lviv, Bittorf was inspired not only by the art galleries in her city, but by the beauties of nature all around her. Lviv is the second largest city in Ukraine, and is near the border of Poland. Laughing, she said, "My city looks like Paris but rains like London." Growing up, she spent a lot of time with her grandparents, who lived among all the beauties of nature. "Every season was beautiful and inspired me to paint and also to write," she said.

Bittorf's parents were faithful Catholics, and always took their children to church. "My father was a strong family man. He even braided my hair," she said. "Church services lasted two hours, and we always stood during the service. Now you can sit on benches. We always went out to eat after church."

Bittorf did not have the opportunity to take art classes in school. "I'm a self-taught artist," she said. "Of course Lviv has art galleries. From childhood I loved going to galleries and museums, and Lviv has many. My favorite was a nature museum with stuffed animals. Another of my favorite museums was an antique museum - especially the clocks and dishes."

She said her favorite subject in school was writing. At 16, she wrote a play that won a prize. And she is grateful that schools in Ukraine taught both German and English.

Bittorf's native city also has a lot of factories, she said. "There are shoe factories, glass factories where pure crystal objects are fashioned, a chocolate factory, a military factory that makes tanks and other weapons, and a coffee factory. "There is always plenty of food and plenty of chocolate," she said.

Bittorf was also exposed to theaters where she enjoyed opera, ballet and plays. She remembers enjoying puppets when she was young. And the circus is a permanent fixture of Lviv.

The paintings of Van Gogh and Monet have especially inspired Bittorf. She had a daughter, Victoria, while in Lviv, and following her mother's example, Victoria learned to love art.

Son Richard was born to the Bittorfs in 2000. When he was 13 years old he built a computer. At present he is working in the insurance business with his father.

Bittorf continues to paint, and enjoys showing people through her beauty salon/art gallery. She welcomes anyone who would enjoy viewing her art work. She is easy to find at 205 College Drive.

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