Aleksandra Ekster: A Pioneer of the Russian Avant-Garde Aleksandra Ekster, a name now synonymous with the vibrant dynamism of early 20th-century art, was far more than simply a painter; she was a cultural architect, skillfully weaving together artistic currents between Russia and Europe. Born Aleksandra Aleksandrovna Grigorovich on January 6, 1882, in Białystok – then part of the Russian Empire, now Poland – her life unfolded against…