Silvia was born in Pleven, Bulgaria and won a place at the prestigious School of Applied Arts at Troyan at the age of 13. She graduated in 1989, and then studied icon painting in Sofia under the tuition of Georgi Tchouchev, the grand master of Bulgarian icons. In 1999 she was commissioned by Downside Abbey to paint the Icon of St Benedict and, in 2000, worked as artist-in-residence at Wells Cathedral - with a commission to paint the Stations of the Cross for the Millennium. Silvia was shortlisted for the European Women of Achievement Awards 2000 for contributions to the Arts. Since then she has been working on both private and public commissions including St Paul's Cathedral, London and Hertford College, Oxford.