Alex Kanevsky (born 1963) is a painter currently based in Tamworth, New Hampshire. His works combine abstraction and figuration in multilayered portraits that capture movement and the constant flow of time, resisting adherence to a single moment. Kanevsky's work is rooted in the artistic traditions of Eastern Europe, where he grew up, and the United States, where he now lives. Early life and education Alex Kanevsky was born in Rostov-na-Donu in Russia in 1963. Although he did not come from an artistic family, Kanevsky's parents owned a large collection of art books that were formative to his early introduction to art. Around age ten, he began producing paintings, drawing inspiration from his art books. Despite his interest in the Impressionists, Kanevsky was almost exclusively exposed to Socialist Realist paintings during his childhood. The artist recalls these works as being “the usual official drivel about workers and peasants engaged in heroic toil, done up in the style of the time, both bombastic and sentimental, heavy on dappled sunlight and Popeye-esque forearms.” When Kanevsky was fifteen, his family left Russia and moved to Vilnius in Lithuania. It was here that the artist began to gain exposure to a more extensive artistic network. At the time, an expressionistic school existed in Lithuania that was unconcerned with realism or social issues. Observing this style of artwork proved to be eye opening to Kanevsky and he realized “that paintings could find the reason for their existence within themselves rather than being merely a decoration of a propaganda tool.” Initially, he studied theoretical mathematics at the Vilnius University in Lithuania. However, in 1983, Kanevsky and his family decided to leave Europe and go to the United States. Settling in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he began taking painting classes at the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts in 1989. Career In 1997, Kanevsky won the Pew Fellowship in the Arts, which allowed him to paint constantly for two years. The ability to work on his art without interruption was a hugely positive influence in the artist's life. When his grant money ran out, Kanevsky decided to commit to pursuing a career as a full-time artist. Galleries eventually responded to his work, providing him with the means to rent studio space. Since that time, Kanevsky has exhibited his work throughout the United States, Canada, Italy, the United Kingdom, France and Ireland. He has had over twenty solo exhibitions and has been