Ksenia has an affinity for sand and the beach at her hometown of Evpatoria in the Crimea provides inspiration.

She says being a sand animator is different from typical painting styles.

“It differs a lot because it is something very, very special. The most important thing is that you have to feel the sand, you have to speak to it. It’s alive and it is your partner. Sometimes it’s cruel, and sometimes it’s amazing and very warm,” Ksenia says.

She uses special volcanic sand mixed with salt, but says just about any powder would do as well.
Her moves are sharp and delicate at the same time, as she creates a little sandstorm on a light board.

“Now I can’t live without this and everything I see in my life, I see in a sand projection,” Ksenia says. “For example I see you and I see how to draw you in this material, I see the shadows, the half-shadows, the light on your face, everything. Maybe I’m a bit crazy about it now, but I think I’m just in a constant process of creating and it is good.”

What's almost unbelievable is that Ksenia has been animating sand for less than a year. She took it up after becoming a victim of the credit crunch.

“The crisis took everything from us. We had a very successful business and in one moment it just collapsed. Many people got crazy, but we didn’t because we did this. Thank to the crisis we started doing this,” Ksenia says.

She is one of just a handful of sand artists around the world – certainly the youngest one – and also one of the busiest.

“In the daytime I’m a mother, I have a son. And I don’t have time to do this. I do this from 11pm till 4am, for about five hours. I sleep for three or four hours a day. It’s not really good for the health, but it is a normal thing because I’m primarily a mother,” Ksenia explains.

Now Ksenia is collaborating on a tribute to Michael Jackson with some of the biggest names in Ukrainian music and preparing a one-woman show.