Academic nude study Painting

I was born in the Black Sea port of Odessa, where I was inspired by the sharp cliffs and the quiet sea to become a painter. I was very influenced by the Russian impressionist tradition, known as the 'Southern Russian School'. I emigrated from the Soviet Union to the United States in 1989, when I was 19 years old. When I arrived in America, the pursuit of a career as an artist was a distant luxury to a young immigrant. I worked in many jobs in my youth, starting off from working at a dry cleaner to opening up my proprietary trading company on Wall Street. In the not so distant past, I served a four-year sentence for insider trading. During my sentence, I had the time to revaluate my life and decided to go back to my spiritual roots. With new vigour, I decided to pursue a career as an artist.