I was born in St. Petersburg, Russia (then Leningrad, USSR), where my mom's improvised darkroom in our kvartira bathroom sparked my fascination with the photographic medium. After relocating to Cleveland, Ohio with my family at a young age, I officially caught the shutter bug, borrowing my mom's film camera whenever possible, photographing anything and everything, and taking a class in basic darkroom techniques. While continuing my personal photographic journey, I received a BA in International Relations and Psychology and then a MA in International Relations from Boston University. I now live in New York City, where I work at a human rights organization, supporting media and storytelling projects related to health and rights. Outside of work, I am pursuing continuing studies in photography at the International Center of Photography School. You can usually find me wandering the streets of NYC with my camera, convincing friends to pose for portraits, experimenting in the kitchen, frequenting museums and galleries, and searching for green space... always.