Artist Statement: Dedicated in loving memory of the artist’s husband, Vlad Portnoy.
I grew up in Odessa, Ukraine where I studied puppet making, painting, and sculpture in Odessa Theater Collage. Just before the Soviet Union collapsed I moved to NYC with my family and continued my studies at Parsons School of Design. I majored in illustration and then I received MFA at the School of Visual Arts. For about ten years I worked for various publications, such as The Wall Street Journal, Money Magazine and Oxygen Media as Senior Designer, photo editor, and illustrator. Recently, I had several solo exhibitions and my work was included in numerous juried group shows. I am a recipient of the COJECO’s Blueprint Fellowship and Grant. I was also selected twice to be NYC Piano Artist for Sing for Hope Piano project in 2017 and 2018. I love scuba diving, and I enjoy drawing musicians in NYC Jazz Clubs.