Andrei’s Training at the Imperial Academy of Arts, St. Petersburg, Russia - 1983 - 1991

Andrei Protsouk

Andrei Protsouk

Contemporary Figurative Artist | Classical European Training

“Everyone deserves to collect great art.”
— Andrei Protsouk

Early Life & Classical Art Education

Born in Donetsk, Ukraine in 1961, Andrei Protsouk demonstrated exceptional artistic ability from an early age. Encouraged by his parents—his mother, Anna, a master embroiderer and calligraphy artist, and his father, Alexander, a professional photographer—Andrei was immersed in visual culture and craftsmanship as a child. At just six years old, his sculptural work already revealed a natural command of form, composition, and storytelling.

After high school, Andrei was accepted into the prestigious Lugansk State School of Fine Art, a highly selective classical art institution comparable to elite American art schools such as Cooper Union or Moore College of Art & Design. He graduated in 1981, earning recognition for his exceptional drawing and painting skills.

Following Lugansk, Andrei was admitted to the renowned Ilya Repin Leningrad Institute for Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture (now the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg, Russia), one of the world’s most respected classical fine art academies. The Repin Academy is internationally celebrated for preserving the academic traditions of European Baroque and 18th-century master painters, producing generations of elite artists.

Mastery at the Russian Academy of Arts

At the Repin Academy, Andrei studied under the legendary master artist Evsey Moiseenko, whose influence profoundly shaped his artistic vision. Moiseenko—an internationally recognized painter and contemporary of Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, and Robert Rauschenberg—became Andrei’s mentor and artistic guide. As one of Moiseenko’s final protégés, Andrei absorbed a rigorous approach to composition, narrative, and expressive line.

Graduating at the top of his class in 1989, Andrei earned the prestigious Lenin Student Stipend and the Red Diploma, the highest academic distinction awarded by the Soviet art system. He went on to pursue doctoral-level studies (Ph.D.) at the Academy, where his work gained exceptional recognition. His drawings were frequently selected—sometimes confiscated by Soviet authorities—for permanent exhibition in the Academy’s museum and inclusion in official Soviet art textbooks and academic publications. Several of these works remain part of the Academy’s collection today.

Perestroika, Immigration & Artistic Transformation

With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the onset of Perestroika, artistic borders opened. Western Europe and the United States saw a surge of interest in Soviet-era fine art, as collectors sought authentic artistic perspectives shaped behind the Iron Curtain.

In 1992, while still enrolled in doctoral studies, Andrei traveled to the United States with fellow artists, sensing a rare opportunity for artistic and personal freedom. His early work during this period reflected the emotional weight of Soviet life—characterized by dark palettes, heavy textures, and somber subject matter, often addressing oppression, censorship, and survival.

In 1994, just months before completing his Ph.D. examinations, Andrei made the life-altering decision to immigrate permanently to the United States with his family. This transition marked a profound evolution in his art. Over time, his work shifted toward vibrant color, joyful subject matter, expressive movement, and optimistic themes, reflecting the freedoms and human connections of Western life.

Exhibitions, Collectors & International Recognition

After settling in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, Andrei quickly established himself in the American art world with the support of the Bixler Gallery. He went on to exhibit in prominent galleries throughout SoHo, New York City, and at ArtExpo New York at the Jacob Javits Convention Center.

His work has been collected internationally by both corporate and private collectors, including Coca-Cola (Denmark), Johnny Walker Expo Company (England), Francis Lang Art (Hamburg, Germany), and notable private collectors such as former U.S. President George W. Bush. Today, Protsouk’s paintings are held in collections across North America, Europe, New Zealand, and Japan.

Artistic Philosophy: “Fine Line” & the Language of Love

Central to Andrei Protsouk’s work is his distinctive technique known as “Fine Line.” Rooted in classical academic training, this method emphasizes straight, constructive linework as the foundation of composition, movement, and emotional rhythm. Revered at the Academy as a master of composition, Protsouk uniquely integrates all elements of classical composition—guiding the viewer’s eye so that each encounter with the artwork reveals something new.

Today, Protsouk draws inspiration from modern life, human interaction, and contemporary culture. His longtime friend and fellow artist Gennadii Gogoliuk has described his work as “Americana Eroticism”—a celebration of love, freedom, intimacy, and the simple pleasures of life in an open society.

His paintings often depict couples flirting, embracing, dining, dancing, or simply sharing moments together. Love—particularly romantic and monogamous connection—is the emotional core of his work. Protsouk believes love is the world’s most universal language, and he expresses it through bold color, expressive line, textured surfaces, and dynamic composition. His work exists at the intersection of Russian classical discipline and Western emotional freedom, creating a visual language entirely his own.

Today: Studio, Gallery & Ongoing Work

Andrei Protsouk lives and works in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, where he maintains his studio and gallery space just off Main Street. From this base, he continues to create and exhibit original paintings, limited editions, and curated collections, while remaining deeply connected to both European tradition and contemporary American life.

His work continues to evolve—reflecting decades of artistic mastery, cultural adaptation, and an unwavering belief that art should be accessible, meaningful, and emotionally resonant.

Andrei has embedded his use of line into all of his artwork and has coined this technique as “Fine Line.” His straight, constructive use of line embodies his classical training in art in every way. In the academy, Andrei was revered as a master of composition where most artists were limited to only a few elements of composition in their artwork, Protsouk incorporated all of the elements of composition in his. This captivates his audience’s eyes which are drawn to move around his canvases so that every time anyone looks at his art, the unique composition doesn’t make you see his painting the same way twice.

Protsouk, today, has come a long way from soviet Russia. He finds inspiration in his environment in all the modern societal activities which can be seen in his paintings. His peer artist and great friend Gennadii Gogoliuk has even expressed his artwork as “Americana Eroticism,” the celebration of love and life in a free American society and enjoying some of life’s most simple pleasures.

The language in his paintings can be seen as a continuous folly between his inner Russianess and western life. In brief, his various style changes through time depicts his extroverted inner relationship with the continuous adaptation and understanding of western lifestyles. His subject matter is his visual philosophical language that creates his unique relationship with his surroundings. Artists see things differently and evoke beauty in what others may seem as usual, mundane or an everyday occurrence. Not to an artist like Andrei. He sees things through the eyes of a true artist representing the world around him as an expression, an extension of his physical being, in his own language and empathy. The soul of his artwork is his infatuation with human relationships, love and beauty. He takes particular interest in representing love; evoking the beauty of monogamous relationships between a man and woman. His paintings often show people doing activities together, flirting, kissing and hugging. He believes that the universal language in the world is love because people live together on this planet synchronously and he embraces that in each painting playfully with unique colors, lines and textures not seen in any other contemporary artists. His artwork is the very synthesis of emotions he feels with his subjects, reflective of his surroundings and his visions of love in the modern world. The evolution of his art has come a long way and can be seen through his various themes since his immigration to the United States.

Today

Andrei lives in Stroudsburg Pennsylvania has his own studio and gallery space off Main Street where he lives with his family. Protsouk now exhibits his art globally. He has been represented in many galleries across the United States, Europe, New Zealand and Japan. 

Follow Andrei on Instagram @andreiprotsouk

Location

Andrei Art Gallery

18 N 7th Street

Stroudsburg, PA 18360 USA

+1 (570) 476-4407

direct: +1 (570) 856-3016

Work actively exhibited in USA, UK, New Zealand, Japan, Spain, Germany, Denmark, Russia.

If you are an Art Dealer, Gallery, Wholesaler, Interior Decorator or an Auction House please fill out our form on the contact page or email andreiprotsouk@gmail.com