I was born in Siberia, Russia, we lived in a city famous for lace wood architecture. My father dabbled in art, but usually he had no time, spending most of his time pursuing his career in engineering. My mother was a Russian language teacher  and my brother worked in a factory. I attended art school for a total of six years. It was a time when it was hard to find good paints (while studying, I had a couple of boxes with only six watercolor paints), and pastel drawing was only just a dream, as we were always short of money to buy art supplies. Fortunately art school was almost free for students at that time.  Because of the hardships associated with drawing and making a living with art, I chose a career in science. I earned my PhD in Biology several years ago, and have worked in Memphis, Chicago and Gainesville as a scientist for last the six years. My daughter was born in Chicago, and we live in Russia now to be closer to her father. While in the US, I rediscovered pastels and experimented with other media. It is very exciting for me, because I am inspired to learn again. I don't always like my final result, but I was encouraged when one of my buyers told me that it is the way of our growth - we keep in mind what we want to achieve, and always continue to learn. I like that my viewers always feel the emotions I include in my paintings, so unlike science. It is very rewarding. I appreciate the constant support from my buyers and all the warm, kind words they convey to me personally and by email, encouraging me to keep painting. My daughter also encourages me to continue my exercises in art, because she likes everything that I draw!  I think she will be an artist too, someday, as she draws very nice pictures with her tiny hands, in my opinion. We share our home with our tired but well loved 14 year old cat (allergy sufferers take note) who sometimes serves as my model.