Biography
Tania Lebedeff was born in Germany of a Russian father and a Franco-Polish mother. Though she was still a baby when she crossed the Atlantic by ship to immigrate to Canada with her parents and perhaps because of it, the language spoken at home was Russian and the culture, very European. Art was also important if for no other reason than that her father was a photographer and her grand-mother painted and produced different works of art. From her roots, she has not only kept her mother tongue, and an aptitude for the fine arts, but also a vague impression of the long ocean journey which she often suggests in the imagery she depicts in her paintings.
She earned her diploma at l'École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, in 1970. Although she was still very young at the time, she already felt that her soul was that of a “ferrywoman”, which prompted her to pursue teacher training for which she earned a second diploma in 1971. Not only was she a professional artist at that point, but she taught visual arts, as well.
Tania Lebedeff is also the Visual Arts Director and co-founder of Arts Station, a recycled garage, transformed into a venue for creation and research by visionary artists. Since its foundation in 1995, it has welcomed hundreds of creators from different horizons (the theatre, painting, dance, music, mime and poetry), attracting thousands of spectators and earning a reputation that reaches well beyond the limits of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, where it is located.
Very involved in her environment, she is regularly invited to sit on juries or preside over different cultural events. She has moreover been invited to participate in a number of international exhibitions. Finally, not only can her paintings be found in several major collections but they have also often been honoured and awarded numerous prizes.
Studies:
1989-90 UQAM: Different painting and mixed media workshops (2 and 3-dimensional).
1987-89 Southern Massachussetts University: "Drawing from Within" Practices and Principles for Leaders.
1983-84 Centre Saidye Bronfman: Painting.
1970-71 UQAM: Bachelor of Fine Arts, Major in Art Education.
1960-70 École des beaux-arts de Montréal: Fine Arts Diploma – Major in engraving.
Prizes and Official Recognition:
2008 Prize from the public “Création sur le champ” (Land art), Mont St-Hilaire.
2006 Prize from the public “Expo-musée du Mont St-Hilaire”, Mont-St-Hilaire.
2001 1st Prize for painting – travelling exhibition of the “Table culturelle de la Vallée du Richelieu”. (Maison Gault, Mont-Saint-Hilaire; Bibliothèque de Saint-Basile-Le-Grand; Bibliothèque de Chambly).
1998 Second-Class Honours, Demidoff Foundation, “Russian Winter”, Exhibition Complexe Desjardins, Montreal.
Major Professional Accomplishments:
Arts Station Board of Directors (Vice-President), since its foundation.
2007-2010 “Expo-competition” of the City of Chambly: Jury Member – Visual Arts.
2000-01 & 2010 “Expo-competition” of the City of Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville: Jury Member – Visual Arts.
1999-2000 City Hall of the City of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, “Porte pour la démocratie”: Participation in a monumental work.
1997-2003 Board of Directors “Productions tableaux vivants”.
1995 Co-founder of Arts Station, a multidisciplinary Art Centre, Mont-Saint-Hilaire.
Collections:
The Château Residence Club, Beaver Creek, CO, USA.
Fondation Paul-Émile Borduas, Mont St-Hilaire, Quebec.
Bibliothèque nationale de Québec, Quebec.
Bibliothèque nationale d'Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario.
Professional Affiliations:
Member of the RAAV (Grouping of Quebec Visual Arts Practitioners) (Regroupement des artistes en arts visuels du Québec).
Member of ARTO (Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Creativity Cooperative) (Coopérative créative de Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu).