The Ukrainian artist and engraver Vasyl Fenchak grew up in Uzhgorod, the capital of the western Ukrainian region of Zakarpattia or Transcarpathia. After graduating from the School of Applied Art in Uzhgorod in 1990, he studied at the Ivan Fedorov Academy of Printing in Lviv for five years, winning awards for his drawings and engravings, including religious themes and a series based on the ideas of the American writer and philosopher Carlos Castaneda, which inspired Fenchak to create profoundly meaningful and complex images revealing Castaneda’s world of spiritual and magical exploration.

After graduating from the Lviv Academy, Fenchak moved to Kyiv, where he now lives and works, refining his engraving skills and also producing watercolours and murals. His work, especially his ex libris or bookplates, have been exhibited in Ukraine, Russia, Belgium, Holland, Japan, Italy and the USA. Since 2001 he has been a full member of the Deutsche Exlibris Gesellschaft (German Society of Ex Libris Artists).

Vasyl Fenchak’s Facebook page, where he regularly posts new work, can be found here.

We are very grateful to our Russian friend Yuri for suggesting the inclusion of this artist, and for supplying many of the images.