For 9-year-old Katya Orphali, painting gives her a moment to explore her imagination.
"I love painting," Katya said. "You can express yourself. You can mix colors. You can just do anything. It doesn't matter what you do."
About 35 of the young Glendale artist's creations will be showcased at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills from 6 to 9 p.m. today.
Dubbed "The Katya Collection," the exhibition is Katya's first since her career began at age 6, when she brought home a painting from school.
Her parents, Shahe and Elena Orphali, put the painting away, but started to take notice of the quality of her work. Her parents enrolled Katya into an art school, where she honed her skills.
"She did that painting completely from her imagination, also," Shahe Orphali said Wednesday as he pointed to a large framed canvas hanging in the family's living room. "There's no such thing. Such a place doesn't exist in the world. It's her — her imagination."
Almost all of the paintings are born out of her imagination, Katya said. Idyllic landscapes, abstract murals and various free-roaming wild animals are some common themes in her work.
But her favorite painting is "My Beloved Mimi," one of the few that portrays something in her life — her Pomeranian dog.
"She is really special to me," Katya said. "She made me feel so happy when I was with her. So I was thinking that I could do some pictures that made her look very royal and very very special, like she was the key to my heart."
Katya carried her 1-year-old puppy, bursting with white fur, around the living room on Wednesday.
"I love her when her hair is all fluffy," she said. "Oh, if only my pillows and bed could feel this way. I'd fall asleep right away."
Besides painting, Katya also enjoys horseback riding, swimming, ballet and chess. But her goal in life right now is to become a veterinarian.
The straight-A student at Salem Lutheran Elementary School has a very supportive family. Her father, Shahe Orphali, was instrumental in arranging the exhibition at the posh hotel and promoting her work to friends and family, said Sybil Lindenbaum, the publicist hired to promote Katya's work.
"The whole purpose of this is to do as much as we can for our daughter," Shahe Orphali said.
"It's a time for us to show her work and introduce her to the art world."
