artist Bio

My oil paintings attempt to capture a moment alone, together with family and friends, and various animaI friends both domestic and wild . Moments in pleasure, pain, hardship, chaos, war, plague, and mental illness. Environmental and social catastrophe are everywhere.

My paintings are done in the context of family life and in a country setting and midst a political environment often fraught with anger and otherness. The idea for a painting is often born out of the memory of a moment with my family that has become precious or out of current events. I paint what I would like to see as well as my worst fears. I search for moments of deep connection as well as casual random moments. I have been working on a series on women and children caught in environmental chaos.

Color and movement are central to my narratives. I like bold and at times random color. My mark-making is both abstract and representational, spontaneous and painstaking, intended to be rude, bold and scary. I am interested in the passage of time, emotion and the landscapes around me. I imagine wild animals like swans, deer and coyotes as my friends.

I grew up in the United States with parents who were born in precommunist Russia. My grandmother, uncle and mother were professional artists. I wanted to be an artist from an early age but my mothers death when I was a child changed my trajectory to child psychology and art therapy.

I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree, a Master Degree in Art Therapy and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. I also completed Training in Child Analysis.

I have completed two artist residencies at the Vermont Studio Center.