We were lucky to catch up with Valeriia Paseka recently and have shared our conversation below.

Valeriia , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you scale up? What were the strategies, tactics, meaningful moments, twists/turns, obstacles, mistakes along the way? We’d love to hear the backstory the illustrates how you grew the firm

My Scaling Up Story

My journey in art began in early childhood. I drew everywhere and all the time, and I knew very quickly that this was what I wanted to dedicate my life to. That feeling only grew stronger over the years — I simply cannot imagine myself without art.

My professional path developed naturally: art school, art academy, my first small commissions, mural company and eventually real client work. While studying at the academy, I discovered my passion for murals. Large-scale projects felt challenging, but in the best possible way — they inspired me more than anything else.

During my studies, I mainly created portrait commissions. After graduating, I joined an mural company where I painted advertising murals for brands such as Netflix, McDonald’s, Adidas, Nike, Yves Saint Laurent, Coca-Cola, and others. This experience gave me a strong technical foundation and taught me how to work at a high professional level. In parallel, I continued developing my own artistic style and working with private clients.

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How did I scale up?

Honestly — by dreaming big and believing in myself.
It sounds simple, but that inner confidence became my engine. And I was lucky to have incredible support from my family and friends — something I consider one of the key elements of my success.

I don’t set limits for myself. If I truly want something, I’ll achieve it — with time, consistency, and effort.
That mindset eventually brought me to New York.

My goal was clear:
— to gain new experience,
— to learn new techniques,
— and to understand how the art world functions here compared to Europe.

Moving to New York became a turning point. Here, I learned not only new artistic and technical skills but also the business side of the industry:
— how to communicate with clients,
— how to work with complex spaces and large walls,
— how to organize a project from start to finish.

This experience helped me elevate my practice to an entirely new level.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Valeria Paseka, but everyone calls me Lela.
I am a professional mural artist.

I began my career in Ukraine, studying at the Academy of Arts in the department of monumental and decorative painting. Even then, I knew that large-scale, giant works were what I wanted to dedicate my life to. It is in these big formats that I feel the most freedom and power in art.

After graduating, I started creating advertising murals for well-known brands in Poland, including Netflix, McDonald’s, Adidas, Nike, Yves Saint Laurent, and Coca-Cola etc, while simultaneously developing my own style and artistic approach.

Later, I moved to New York, where I continue my lifelong work: creating murals for private and commercial clients, including realistic scenes, advertising murals, lettering, and decorative and artistic wall paintings.

One of the main themes in my work is realistic portraits. I especially love working with black-and-white images, both on walls and on canvas. For me, portraits are a way to convey the depth of emotion, character, and living energy of a person through simplicity and contrast.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

Every new commission is a challenge. Each wall is different—different shape, different surface, different texture—and sometimes the walls aren’t fully prepared as they should be.

When I paint outdoors, I usually work on brick or other uneven surfaces, which is very different from a smooth canvas. On top of that, I have to account for weather conditions: the sun can dry the paint too quickly, the wind can be tricky when I’m working on a lift at height, and humidity or rain can also affect the process.

Because of all these factors, I always have to plan several extra steps beyond just painting. It’s not just about creating the artwork; it’s about problem-solving, adapting on the spot, and making sure the final piece turns out as intended despite the unpredictable conditions. Every project pushes me to think creatively and stay resilient, and that’s what makes mural work so rewarding.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

The first thing I would say is practice, practice, and more practice. Talent, of course, is important, but without perseverance and consistent effort, progress would be much slower. I truly believe that a person can achieve anything they set their mind to. Honestly, I’m very stubborn, and I consider that a strength because I channel it in the right direction—it drives me to pursue my goals, grow, and improve.

I remember when I was studying at art school and couldn’t figure out how to convey volume in my drawings. I would sit for hours every night, crying over my work and drawing tirelessly. It took several sleepless nights to finally reach the result I wanted. That experience left a lasting impression on me as a key lesson in problem-solving: if there’s something you want to master, dedicate as much time as necessary, and the results will come.

This principle stays with me to this day. Every time I face a challenge, I think back to that sheet of paper marked with the traces of my tears—and it reminds me that persistence and dedication always lead to success.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pasekalela?igsh=MTRjcXFjbDFsdGQ5NQ==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/17XXdZBndP/?mibextid=wwXIfr