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Sergey Chilikov. Selected

“FotoDepartament” Gallery

in collaboration with Gallery.Photographer.ru

in the course of its “Blue” program, dedicated to well-known Russian and foreign photographers, presents:

Sergey Chilikov /Yoshkar-Ola

Selected

22 April – 25 May` 2012
Exhibition opening: 22 April, Sunday, since 17.00 till 21.00
Held at:  “FotoDepartament” Gallery / Nevskiy prospect 32/ 2nd floor

 

In autumn of 2011, Sergey Chilikov’s first book was released by the Dutch publishing house Schilt Publishing. The book was followed by a series of interviews with Chilikov in the international press and articles about his work as well as a number of exhibitions. FotoDepartament Gallery presents the exhibition at Saint-Petersburg after the solo-show at the Gallery.Photographer.ru in Moscow and is to dedicate the release of this book in Russian.

At the exhibition will be presented around thirty color and black and white works by Chilikov, who is called a photographer among philosophers and a philosopher among photographers. Indeed, one of the problems in comprehending Sergey Chilikov’s work is that he cannot be fit into one of the existing cannons: his works carry on a strained dialogue and contradict one another. In Chilikov’s case we have a rich, even overly-rich visual language that cannot be simplified to familiar contexts, but rather must be comprehended “from zero.” The book and exhibition present a new and complex reading of his creative works.

Chilikov’s works are formally staged. Chilikov’s western counterparts are Jeff Wall and Phillip-Lorca diCorcia. They have little in common with Chilikov visually, but they also express concentrated emotions and anxiety through meticulously constructed banality and “meaninglessness.” Furthermore, they say more about the reality that surrounds us than the most daring journalistic truth.

A characteristic method for Chilikov is to use real personalities (and objects) in real environments and situations. Only their relationships are unreal: these are directed by Chilikov.

About artist: Sergey Chilikov was born in 1953. He has graduated from the Mari Pedagogical Institute, ultimately obtaining an MA in Philosophy in 1983. In 1976-1991 Chilikov lectured at the Yoshkar-Ola University. In 1993 he’s published a book on Russian philosophy, “The Owner Of a Thing, Or the Anthology Of Subjectivity”.
Chilikov’s photography career has started in 1976 in the Fact group (S. Chilikov, Y. Evlampiev, V. Voetsky, E. Likhosherst, V. Mikhaylov). Soon he has become the leader of non-conformist photography in his region. Together with a group of like-minded individuals, he organized exhibitions and festivals; he managed to co-exist quite peacefully with the official photography organizations of the Soviet time. In 1980-1989, Chilikov organized the Analytical Photo Exhibitions (‘Yoshkar-Ola biennale’), and the annual open-air photo festival on Kundysh River. In 1988 he’s participated in the final exhibition of the Fact group at Na Kashirke exhibition hall (Moscow).

Since 1989 Chilikov has been working on a multitude of projects involving different towns of the former Soviet Union. His series, entitled ‘Photo Provocations’, ‘Countryside Glam’, ‘The Beach’, ‘Gambling’, ‘Philosophy of a Journey’, and others, depict the latent eroticism of people in the countryside, that appears even more vital when it contrasts with the depressing surroundings. Sergey Chilikov’s brilliant and playful photographs, full of typically Russian humor and self-criticism, are a feast for the eye. He is considered to be one of today’s most influential and creative contemporary Russian photographers.

Lives in Yoshkar-Ola, Russia.

Gallery.Photographer.ru exclusively represents the photographer since 2010.

Media partners: The Village / Look At Me / Be-in / Photographer.ru

Press contacts:
by phone +7 (901) 301-7993
by e-mail: press@fotodepartament.ru

FotoDepartament Gallery
Nevskiy prospect 32 / 2nd floor / Saint-Petersburg / Russia
subway station Gostinyi Dvor / Nevskiy prospect
Courtyard of St. Catherine Cathedral / left side
Open everyday 12.00 till 20.00
phone/fax: (812) 314-5925 / +7-901-301-7994
www.fotodepartament.ru / press@fotodepartament.ru

Яндекс.Метрика