My work depicts shared humanity in contemporary life. We live in an extremely diverse and integrated world where we have more in common with one another than one may initially think. The people I depict are boldly make eye contact with the viewer commanding an intimacy that asks us to face one another with empathy rather than fear. They present themselves confidently in all their complexity and vulnerability wanting to be understood, wanting to be heard. The same way you want to be understood and heard. This oculus and intentionality were informed by my early childhood years as an Eastern European immigrant growing up amidst life lived out loud in New York’s storied past of the 80’s. This very colorful tapestry was indelibly burned into my consciousness as my formative years. One thing became very certain to me and that was that there were endless ways to be whoever you wanted to be. I also became enamored with the tradition of European art and attended the Art Students League. It was a devotion to drawing and representational realism coupled with the sensibilities of modern-day photographers that I employ to create works that are intended to remind us of ourselves and the world we share.
Education
1994 – 1996 SUNY Purchase, Fine Art Major in Painting
1990 – 1996 Art Student’s League of New York, Study in Life Painting with Peter Cox
2000 – 2001 Art Students’ League of New York, Study in Life with Harvey Dinnerstein
2025 - UMASS Lowell BFA
Gallery Representation and Exhibitions
Gallery Henoch - 2004 – 2006
Lyons Wier Gallery – Under the Radar – July 2011
Brooklyn Museum – Top Ten Finalist Targeting First Saturday Group Show December 2012
Dacia Gallery – Art Show on Broadway – November 2012
Dacia Gallery – Figurative Group Show – December 2012
Dacia Gallery in conjunction with The European House of Arts – Universal Art Project – Mazieres, France – July 2013. Erfurt, Germany – August 2013, Sibiu, Romania – August 2013
Dacia Gallery – Solo Show – August 2013
Karen and Ed Adler Gallery – Solo Show – September – November 2016
Sugarlift – 2021
The Other Art Fair Sponsored By Saatchi Art – November 2021
Zhou B Art Center – Liberating The Flesh Group Show – July 2022
33 Contemporary – Summer Pop Up Group Show – August 2022
33 Contemporary – Me, Myself, And I Group Show – October 2022
Wausau Museum Of Contemporary Art – 6th Annual National Juried Exhibition – January 2023
33 Contemporary – Expressions in Motion– August 2023
Almenara Collection – Still Life Category – November 2023
FiKVA Figurative Kunst Vandaag – Top 100 – May 2025
Fitchburg Art Museum – 89th Annual Regional Exhibition, Peter McCollum Prize – June 2025
Almenara Collection – Figurative Category – September 2025
Almenara Collection – Portrait Category – September 2025
Selected Bibliography
2011 Art PR Wire “Under The Radar OPENING”
2011 All Art News “Under the Radar is Lyons Wier Gallery’s Second Group Exhibition of the Summer Season”
2012 Artists Wanted “Art Takes Time Square”
2012 BLOUIN ARTINFO “Art News and Gossip”
2012 Observer, Gallerist NY “Brooklyn Museum Announces Top 10 Artists From ‘Go Brooklyn,’ Its Crowd-Sourced Competition [Updated With the Winners' Artworks]”
2012 Brooklyn Spectator – Painting Beyond the Pose, with Aleksander Betko
2013 Saatchi Online – Featured Artist – Week of April 6th
2013 iARTistas “Goss 183 #6 (Profile and feature)
2013 Hyperallergic “A View from the Easel – 37th Installment”
2013 Huffington Post “The Immigrant’s Paradox”
2013 FineArt Connoisseur “New York Through New Eyes: The Paintings of Aleksander Betko”
2014 Poets and Artists “Raw Beauty” Issue #55
2015 Greenpointers – “Eight Brilliant Painters with Studios in Greenpoint”
2015 Poets and Artists "Realism Issue" Edited by Frank Bernarducci Issue #67
2022 #hashtagmag – “Interview With Aleksander Betko”
2023 Fine Arts Connoisseur – Drawing Us To See
2023 Poets and Artists - 10 Questions
2023 Fine Arts Connoisseur – Artist Spotlight: Aleksander Betko
2023 Fine Arts Connoisseur - Five Artists to Watch
2024 Realism Today - Artist Aleksander Betko: Moving Through Disparate Worlds
2024 UMASS Offering, Annual Literary Journal Front Cover