What is your ultimate goal for your artwork? 

At the beginning of every artwork that I create is the Thought. This thought can be triggered by a book, a movie, a conversation, an event or just come from inside. This thought is not just something superficial. Sometimes it is boiling in my head for years before I think, I am ready to say that I know the answer or agree or disagree with the author of the book or someone’s scientific or philosophical theory. 

Of course, while I am going through these stages of information processing, I need to share my ideas with people. I do it by creating stories in my paintings. Even if the painting is a still life or a floral painting, it is still a story that illustrates my ideas about this world.

When people are able to feel or understand the meaning of my painting, it makes me happy, because I know, there are people with the same attitude to life out there. 

That is why I would say, that the ultimate goal for my artworks is to help me find like-minded people.

Explain your process.

After the idea of the painting is finalized in my head, I need to try different ways of putting it on my canvas. I start with a lot of preliminary sketches which are really small graphite pencil sketches on paper. I try to find the best composition for the painting, the best way to place imaginary light source to transfer the mood of my painting. Sometimes it takes about forty sketches to figure out what I need. 

The next step is to make a decision about colors of the painting, this is also a very important step in creating the mood I want for my painting. I start with just some color swatches on cardboard, and after the main colors are chosen, I create a small not detailed at all painting, just some shapes of main colors to see how everything works together. 

Then, for figurative paintings, I need to work with a model, asking the model to recreate the pose that I invented while sketching. I sketch the model, and if it was the agreement, take reference photos. 

And the process of creating a detailed drawing begins. When the drawing is finished, it needs to be transferred to the support of my choice, which is mostly canvas, and the magic of painting in multiple layers begins. This process might take from several weeks to several months, depending on the size of the painting. And I have to let you know, that small paintings do not take less time to work on them. Detailed small paintings may take up to sixty or seventy hours. 

After that, I usually give myself time not to see the painting (keep it covered or hiding it in the room that I do not use too often) until I make a final decision. In a few days, I view the painting again and decide if it is finished or needs more work and if I like it enough to show it to the world.

What artwork in history has inspired you the most.

I am lucky to have Russian culture in my blood and soul. My Dad used to take me to Art Museums and shows around Russia as a child. As all children I was attracted to bright colors, and Impressionism, French and Russian, was the Thing. Then as a teenager, I travelled to St Petersburg, Leningrad at that time, on my own, spent several days in the Hermitage Museum and discovered Rembrandt. Of course, I new his works before, but this time something stopped me at the Return of the Prodigal Son. I cannot explain what exactly it was, but I could not take it out of my head. I rediscovered this painting for myself: the light, the composition, the story behind it, everything was so intriguing. I became a huge fan of Rembrandt since that moment and still am.