Alex Shtelman

For Toronto-based painter Alex Shtelman, art is a way of coping with life's challenges. Born in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine, in 1958, Shtelman is now happy to call himself Canadian. “It's like I've always lived here; I feel safe and confident, able to sell my pictures and work in my own way without facing the kind of censorship that I had to deal with in the Soviet Union 30 years ago," he says.  “Since I came to Canada in 1997, the time has gone by very fast, and I think that's a sign I've been having fun."