Russia, 1953
Yelena Lewis is a visual artist whose practice centres on figurative painting, often
exploring myth, memory, and emotional resilience through oil, cold wax, and marouflage
on canvas. Born in pre Perestroika Moscow and now based in France, her work is shaped
by a transnational life and a deep engagement with the universality of human emotion.
Her paintings frequently feature solitary figures set against abstract or textured
backgrounds, using both monochrome and bold block colour to evoke themes of
transformation, resistance, and inner stillness. Yelena Lewis has exhibited widely across
Europe in both solo and group exhibitions, with her work featured in contemporary art
fairs, digital platforms, and prestigious cultural heritage sites. Notably, her participation
in the FABLE Exhibition at Écuries de Saint-Hugues in Cluny, France, was supported by a
grant from the Cluny municipal council, underscoring local recognition of her artistic
contribution. Her work has also been shown at historically and architecturally significant
venues such as the Plexus Gallery in Montreux, Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues in
Geneva, the Château de Voltaire in Ferney-Voltaire, and Fort l’Écluse in Collonges.
Exhibiting in these heritage sites not only situates her practice within a broader cultural
and historical dialogue but also reflects the enduring relevance of her themes, identity,
resilience, and emotional truth, within spaces that themselves embody layers of
European history and transformation. Yelena is a founding member of the Fable
Association, an offshoot of the D137 Gallery in exile, and an active member of the No
Name Collective. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when physical exhibitions were
suspended, her work was featured in ZEST Hall’s inaugural digital exhibition, Protest for
Progress, in partnership with Leeds City Museum. Her paintings also appeared in
1340ART Magazine and received full-page features in two editions of the No Name
Collective Quarterly. Her work has been praised by critics for its emotional depth and
visual clarity. Renowned art critic Sabino Vona described her paintings as capturing “the
colour of emotion,” while Suzanne Bel noted that her compositions “capture the poetry
of movement” in “rich colour schemes.” Yelena’s recent works, including Bluebells,
Tulips, and Ropewalker, were created in response to the war in Ukraine, reflecting her
opposition to violence and her belief in the power of art as a form of quiet resistance.
Whether through mythological figures, natural symbolism, or meditative portraits, her
work invites viewers into a space of reflection, empathy, and shared humanity