Jenka Barakina (RU)

Born 1974

”Barakina grew up in Yakutsk, capital of Siberia. At 12 years, without her parents knowing, she applied to the art school of Yakutsk. From an early age it was clear that this girl had a talent and was destined. You could often find her drawing, on her own, while sitting unter the table for hours. When she became 18, Barakina took part in the entrance examination for the State Academy of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg. This academy was in the former USSR renowned for its rigorous and high-quality art education. Only one in twelve participants in the entrance examination could enter. Pending the result of the entrance exam, Barakina moved to Vladivostok. She studied a specialisation year in painting, after which she went to the metropolis Moscow. This stay was quickly aborded when she was admitted to the Academy of St. Petersburg. This is how Barakina began a five-year program of monumental art. The education involved besides painting, also frescoes, mosaics, enamels, encaustic, textiles, etc. Her thesis was a glass frame, which won a prize. In old Soviet tradition, the academy placed great emphasis on the classical techniques of the old Russian masters. This is a solid foundation from which her current work still benefits.

When Barakina graduated in 1998, the Russian society had undergone a complete transformation. Economically there was chaos and everything changed quickly. Through her Russian professor she came in contact with a Dutch art gallery who invited her to come to work temporarily in the Netherlands. And this was repeated several times until she finally moved permanent to Ghent at the end of the year 1999. From there, Barakina is fully focussing on painting and she starts to develop her own style. She likes to paint people – intimate and delicate – like she has a personal relationship with the figure on the canvas. With her coarse, lively painting technique she gets the canvas in motion.

Barakina exhibits for several years at the major art fairs such as ArtGent, Artup Lille, Art Breda, Realisme Amsterdam, Art Fair Köln, where she reaches a large audience. Barakina is one of the most talented painters in Belgium. Her work is part of numerous national and international private collections. Her distinctive and inimitable style makes her work highly demanded.” 

From Barakina’s own webpage