Anastasia Krylova is a painter and educator based in Montclair, New Jersey. Born in Russia and raised in the United States after immigrating to Maryland just before her eighth birthday, her early life unfolded between cultures. Summers spent in Russia during childhood created a lasting sense of belonging both to and between places, an experience that continues to inform her work.

Her paintings and participatory projects explore themes of separation from self, others, and the environment, and the ways connection can be rebuilt through shared attention and embodied practice. Through painting and collaborative creative experiences, she examines thresholds where distance gives rise to care, collaboration, and the possibility of renewed relation.

Krylova holds a BA in Art and Art History from St. Mary’s College of Maryland and an MA in Inclusive Elementary Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She also studied abroad in Bordeaux, France, an experience that further shaped her perspective on cultural exchange and identity.

Alongside her studio practice, she has spent more than fifteen years working as an educator in public schools across New York and New Jersey. She is also the founder of Portal Paint, a workshop series that combines meditation, somatic movement, and open-ended art making, inviting participants to explore creativity as a form of presence and connection.

Her work has been exhibited in New Jersey and Maryland, and her travels throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas continue to inform her understanding of place, belonging, and shared human experience.

She is interested in how creative practice can support attention, presence, and emotional healing.