Svetlana Weis Director of the InterArt Gallery, journalist Date of Birth: 30.06.1960 Country: USA

Biography of Svetlana Weiss

Svetlana Weiss, the director of the "InterArt Gallery" and a journalist, was born on the day of the famous Tunguska meteorite. Interestingly, Svetlana believes that this coincidence greatly influenced her life. Although she currently resides in New York, she fondly remembers her childhood in Moscow and willingly shares her stories about it. She grew up in a vibrant neighborhood that was the center of Moscow's cultural intelligentsia.

According to Svetlana's memories, while the rest of the city hurried to work on a normal workday morning, her neighborhood peacefully slept, with only a few people rushing to catch the metro or buses. The area would come alive around 11 am when the wine department of the 'Komsomolets' grocery store opened. Svetlana recalls that waiting in line, she would often hear conversations about high art, theater, and literature. Her childhood was filled with various activities, including attending specialized schools, figure skating, swimming in the pool, and spending summers in Rublevka. One of her most memorable experiences during childhood was visiting the Pushkin Museum.

Svetlana pursued a career as a mining engineer and got married to Konstantin Weiss, the son of an institute professor, during her studies. After completing their education, the young couple moved to the Polar Circle, spending nearly eight years working at the Vorkuta-Ugol coal mine. It was during this time that their child was born, and they were able to accumulate savings. However, their savings were quickly depleted due to the country's inflation crisis, with their only significant purchase being a color Japanese television set. Nevertheless, Svetlana's most vivid memory of the North was the Northern Lights.

In 1980, during the Moscow Summer Olympics, Svetlana worked at the press center. Besides that, she gained professional experience working for newspapers such as "Moskovsky Komsomolets," "Gornyatskaya smena," and "Zapolyarye." She also worked for the radio station "Mayak" and the news department of Central Television. In 1993, Svetlana and her family relocated to the United States. After purchasing a house on Long Island, this decision led Konstantin and Svetlana to make a significant change in their lives - they decided to open a gallery. Their main focus was promoting the ideas of surrealism and fantastic realism. Thus, the newly opened "InterArt Gallery" was dedicated to the concept of surrealism. Since 1997, Svetlana Weiss has been the director of the "InterArt Gallery."

Additionally, Svetlana is an accredited journalist who has collaborated with various publications such as "New York INFO", "Novoe Russkoe Slovo", "METRO", "V Novom Svete", "Komsomolskaya Pravda", "SLOVO/WORD", as well as numerous electronic publications including RussianNY.com and DAYSRU.com. Presently, their gallery works with several contemporary artists, including Jane Andrews from England and Danish artists Thor Lindel and Ole Alberg. The couple also has projects with Russian artists. Although the gallery is not large, as per their intention, the current team consists of about ten people. Svetlana does not dwell on the difficulties, adhering to her favorite saying, "Eyes are afraid - hands do." Thus, the "InterArt Gallery" in Manhattan represents modern surrealism, perhaps influenced by Svetlana Weiss's birth on the day of the Tunguska meteorite.