Tatiana Alexeeva

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Tatiana was born in 1963 in a small village outside of Cheboksary, Russia, located on the Volga river. Like many Russian families at that time Tatiana's parents worked farmland, her father was a carpenter and her mother was a homemaker. Tatiana's mom was very artistic and her father made billboards for a collective farm. In her free time from helping out on the farm and herding village cows and sheep Tatiana would enjoy drawing with colored pencils, painting with watercolors and playing outdoors. She was surrounded by rolling hills, endless fields of rye and cornflowers, thick forests of old oaks, birch trees and towering evergreen pines.

Tatiana was not sure who she wanted to be until 9th grade. One day a couple of artists came to the school to paint murals on the hallway and gym walls. When they were finished they tossed the leftover oil paints on top of a snow covered trash bin. On her way home after school Tatiana found the leftover paint tubes laying in the snow. She instantly became curious and decided to open the tubes when she got home to test them out. The oil paint was different from the watercolor with which she usually painted, they had a distinct scent of earth and linseed oil. She loved it and at that moment she knew that one day she would definitely become an artist.

Pursuing her dreams Tatiana went to study at an art college in Vladimir city. There she worked primarily with watercolors and acrylics, and after graduation she taught herself how to paint with oils. Upon receiving an Associates Degree in Art & Design Tatiana began working as an artist-designer at the National Library in Cheboksary, and then at a small factory where she hand decorated ceramic plates and other pottery items in Gzhel, a traditional Russian blue and white decorative style. Tatiana began her family and had two children while teaching at an after school art club of a youth center for several years. After moving to Saint Petersburg in 1991 and discovering the art scene in the cultural capital of Russia she began to sell her paintings on the Nevsky Prospect, a mecca for art enthusiasts and a major shopping and tourist destination. In 1997 Tatiana took the leap and flew to the United Stated to find a better life, her children joined her the following year. Tatiana made Bucks County, Pennsylvania, her home and currently resides just outside of Doylestown with her husband.

Tatiana has a deep appreciation and admiration for the beautiful Russian countryside where she grew up. She considers herself very fortunate to live in Bucks County with its bright red farm houses, old mills, charming valleys, hills and rivers that keep her wanting to explore her surroundings every season. Today the beauty of Bucks County is her inspiration.

Oil is Tatiana's medium of choice, but recently she fell in love with pastels which are reminiscent of colored pencils from her childhood. Tatiana continues to paint nearly every day and is currently busy working on a special project using pastels.