She received an M.F.A.from Moscow State University of Print Media,  studied philosophy and art at the Institute of Contemporary Art, and performance at the PYRFYR School in Moscow. A diverse education and the various technical capabilities allow her to vary the  media in her artistic narratives. Her primary themes are social and private issues and  topics considered taboo. 

In her first solo exhibition, she painted over portraits of her departed  relatives. It was nominated for the Kandinsky Prize. Some of her other projects made an impact,  especially among activists. For example, exhibitions like “Feminist Pencil 2”, “Feminist Dictionary” and her participation in a number of international biennale. 

She has actively taken part in feminist initiatives and private initatives such as the “Kitchen”, organized exhibitions and a discussion club. Her projects are often participatory, such as a project at the 5th Psychiatric Hospital in Khotkovo, where she documented  the stories of sick women who were victims of violence. The theme of death is present in another project, “A little heat.”  Smetanina asked patients from a hospice about what made them happy at the end of their life and painted their answers. 

Sometimes her works are very traumatic to herself. In the performance “Ladder”, she climbed a flight of  stairs, and was repeatedly pushed back by an assistant. It stood for  the patriarchal hierarchy of power.Currently she works regularly with painting and performance using  the theme “body” in a feminist context. Approaching the issue is also radical as it  depicts vaginas, touching on such sensitive topics as fatshaming, body shaming, slatshaming.