Iconographer Vladislav Andrejev was born in 1938 in St. Petersburg, Russia. After his formal educational studies, Vladislav became interested in religious art, which was impossible to practice during the Soviet regime. The search for deeper meaning in life and art urged him on to solitary travels in parts of the Russian wilderness, including the Carpathian and Caucasus Mountains, where Orthodox recluse-monks lived in hiding. The search also led him to encounters with the monk-iconographer Abbot Alipiy of the Pskov Caves Monstery and to independent study of icon painting. In 1980 Vladislav emigrated to the United States. Becoming established in America during a period when interest in the Icon was growing, he has since written numerous icons which can be found in churches and homes throughout the world.