Pavlenko graduated in Painting from
St. Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts in 1988. He studied under
Boris Ugarov, President of the Academy of Fine Arts of the
USSR, and was nominated for the Gold Medal. In 1989, Sergei Pavlenko moved to the West, received immediate recognition and began to paint and exhibit his work in London and the USA. Since then he has been living and working in London and is now a British citizen. Now an established
portrait painter, both in
Europe and the United States, Sergei Pavlenko’s work is in constant demand. His portrait of
The Queen, completed in 2000, was reportedly the Queen's favourite portrait since her coronation. It was personally unveiled by the queen. The painting received impressive coverage by the world press and television and a postage stamp was subsequently made in the UK. In 2004, Sergei Pavlenko had a one-man exhibition in
London in the Russian Embassy and in
Moscow in the British Embassy, with over a thousand guests attending the
Private View. Four TV channels covered the event and numerous articles and reviews on the subject appeared in newspapers and magazines. In Russia, Sergei Pavlenko’s name has been added to the list of highly distinguished emigrants and is next to the ballet dancer
Anna Pavlova. In Britain,
Channel 4 of the UK Television showed a film about Sergei Pavlenko and his portraits. Sergei Pavlenko was awarded a commission to paint a large-scale picture of The Queen meeting with Princes
William and
Harry at the
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. ==Selected exhibitions==