Valentin Popov was born in Kyiv, Ukraine. He attended the Kyiv State Arts Institute (now National Academy of Visual Arts and Architecture). He is a Foreign Member of the National Academy of Arts of Ukraine, Kyiv.
Popov's work has been exhibited internationally at institutions including the National Academy of Fine Art of Ukraine; Long-Sharp Gallery, Indianapolis, IN; Imago Galleries, Palm Desert, CA; Kismet Gallery, San Jose, CA; Mimi Ferzt Gallery, New York City; University of California, Berkeley; and New Gallery, Houston, TX.
Popov’s work is in public collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City; Museum of Russian-American History of Alaska; Duke University Museum of Art, Durham, NC; Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, San Francisco, CA; National Art Museum of Ukraine, Kyiv; Philadelphia Museum of Art; University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor; and Yale University Art Museum in New Haven, Connecticut.
He was an artist-in-residence at Kala Art Institute, Berkeley, CA; Smith-Andersen Editions, Palo Alto, CA; Djerassi Foundation, Woodside, CA; Senezh Artists' Residence, Moscow, Russia; and Republic Sednev Artists' Residence, Chernihiv, Ukraine. Popov received a Silver Medal from the Academy of Arts of the Soviet Union; and grants from the Association of Fine Arts of the USSR and the Academy of Art of the USSR.
—From Brandywine Workshop and Archives records