Alla Valezina

My name is Alla Vylegzhanina. I paint under the pseudonym Alla Valezina.

I was born and live in the Vladimir Region. Since childhood, I’ve loved drawing, trying to capture the beauty I saw on my way home from kindergarten, and later from school. I dreamed of becoming a teacher - and somewhere deep inside, an artist too.

By profession, I am an educator. For 25 years I worked with children, 18 of those years in a children’s home. My life has always been filled with care and responsibility. The dream of watercolor - like the quiet expectation of a miracle - remained in the background, like an old but deeply familiar voice. Paintbrushes would occasionally find their way into my hands, only to remind me of what hadn’t come true yet.

But when a dream truly lives in your heart, it will always find its way. My children grew up, and with the love and support of those close to me, I finally found time for watercolor - light, airy, and revealing the magic of simple things.

In 2025, an important milestone happened in my artistic life: three of my paintings won prizes at the AKVARELIUM International Watercolor Competition. Two works - Silence and Fairy Tale- received third prize in the Landscape category, and my painting Awakening was awarded the top prize in that category.