Ksenia (Xisha) Angelova was born in 1975 into a family of architects in Belarus. She is an icon painter, artist and mosaic artist, and graduated from the Belarusian Academy of Fine Arts in 1991–1996. She continued her studies with three-year courses in icon painting from 2006 to 2009.

She has decorated a number of temples and churches in Belarus and Ukraine. Facade frescoes, mosaic
Since 2020 Xisha dedicates herself to the gallery of portraits of Belarusian political prisoners under the title “The Martyrology of Belarus”. She was inspired by the miracle of the humanity of Belarusians that was revealed during the peaceful protests against the falsification of the presidential election results in the summer and autumn of 2020. The number of people who have gone through and are still going through imprisonment, torture, fines and exile is measured in thousands.
“What hurts the most are those who are no longer with us and those who have suffered for many years in prisons under inhumane conditions.”
Many people in prison associate their chance for freedom with the victory of Ukraine.
Ms. Angelova has created more than 1500 portraits of Belarusian political prisoners. The number of portraits is growing every day. Articles about the author’s conception:

Мартыралог Беларусі: партрэты беларускіх палітвязняў Ксішы Ангелавай

Xisha wants her project to contribute to the understanding and healing of the trauma of Belarusians, and to contribute to the rejection of violence.

Participant in: August 2024 Fellowship: The Arts as a Tool for Peacebuilding