Maria William is a traditional self-taught artist based in Florida. She grew up in Lviv, Ukraine, and was immersed into a creative atmosphere from an early age. She loved drawing landscapes and animals, and writing stories inspired by Jules Verne and J.R.R. Tolkien. She fell in love with fantasy art in the late 80s, shortly before the USSR collapsed.

Even though Maria has been drawing and painting her entire life, she never considered becoming a professional artist until she moved to the United States in the summer of 1994. A year later, she began to take on freelance art assignments. She became a full time artist in 2001, after her first child was born.

Maria’s art is a product of decades of observation, experimentation, and study of people, environments, and the works of great artists, especially from the Renaissance, Rococo, and Pre-Raphaelite eras. She’s inspired by nature, mythology, history, and various cultural elements, especially those from Asia. She loves working with watercolors and graphite the most, but has used many other mediums, such as oils, colored pencils, ink, and even digital media.

Maria spent many years exhibiting and selling her works at themed conventions all over the U.S. She has also worked on book covers, concept art for RPGs, and commissions for private collections. She’s exhibited at various galleries throughout the U.S., such as Salmagundi Club, Gristle Gallery in NYC, and La Bodega Gallery in San Diego, CA. Her art has won several awards, and has been featured in many publications.

Having lived in New York City for nearly 26 years, Maria relocated to sunny Florida in the summer of 2020. She lives in a charming small town outside Orlando with her husband, two sons, and two feline sidekicks. Aside from art she loves videogames, music, reading, writing, and horseback riding.