About the Artist

Originally an immigrant from Moldova, Volta Voloshin-Smith celebrates food with art and animation. 

She is the founder of Color Snack Studio and her mission to watercolor the world can be seen in various projects such as custom illustrations, animations, workshops and brand activations that she creates for national and international brands (like Dallas Mavericks and Michaels Stores). She has taught thousands of students in her online and in-person watercolor workshops, where she encourages everyone to rediscover their inner artist. 

Volta is also the author of Watercolor Snacks, an instructional book on how to paint various foods with watercolors. It’s a book that takes a fun and approachable way to encourage others to pick up a brush and play. 

Volta’s fine art pieces range from evocative still lifes that capture nostalgia of meals shared with others, to playful birds on snacks that celebrate life’s simplest joys.

Artist Statement

I grew up in post soviet union Moldova where I spent my youthful summers helping my grandmother in her garden. Being a part of the process from planting to harvesting left an imprint in me to appreciate the fullness of the food in front of me and all the journey it took to get here. 

Coming to America opened up my eyes and stomach to the possibilities of food from many other cultures. Exploring other cultures helps me connect with my community and I carry that inspiration with me when I paint. 

Painting food brings up a sense of belonging, of sharing a meal and sharing in each other’s triumphs and losses. It is how I tether myself to my environment; always inspired by a local chef’s recent creation and moved to the point of tears upon seeing beautiful and fresh produce. 

My art aims to uplift, to encourage, to color. I embraced watercolors as my chosen medium because of its effervescence and soothing qualities. My intention is to combine the joy of vibrant colors and the calm of watercolors for an experience of pure, unfiltered joy, the kind we all used to have back before the world told us we needed to fit into a box.

What is your “Dreamland” ?

My “Dreamland” is to be calm, and stay in gratitude in the midst of the chaos around us. My art represents a state of calmness in my soft colors in abstract form that represent joy, happiness, and a peaceful sense of our surroundings. I feel that my paintings should spark an emotional connection with the viewer, start conversations, slow people down and let them breathe deeper for those few moments of observation.

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