Svetlana Valueva

This 40-year-old native of Moscow portrays women who live in a mystical world, surrounded by bizarre forms, signs and objects: a world real to them, however steeped in fantasy.
She began painting as a toddler. Her father, an artist, became her first and most important teacher, encouraging her to paint alongside him in his studio.
Thirteen years of state structured curriculum established Valueva's art and drawing skills in "social realism." In 1975, at age 9, she received the Gran Prix at the annual International Exhibition in Delhi, India, a juried exhibition of paintings by 150,000 children from 35 countries.  She placed third in the same competition in 1977, won the gold (Gran Prix) again at age 13.More