Artist Statement
The concept of my current work is the appeal to nature and its primary elements. I like to integrate my work with the elements – I want to show the fragility of our world, the depth and timeless beauty of nature. With this I would like to draw attention to many contemporary problems like over consumption, waste problems, housing and community problems... The idea behind my photographs is not only to show the human evolution but to trigger a reconnection with nature. Process Statement
I would like to be as open as possible and allow opportunities to occur. I use spontaneously arising circumstances to imprint another layer of reality to the physical media. Probing the interaction of all levels of complex processes as they carve out on themselves - in this case, on film. The best that can happen is when the subject is not only captured on film with the camera lens, but also penetrates into the very physical media, and an absolutely original layer is superimposed on the primary image, a cryptic message which understanding is the opportunity to see the layering of the world and its presence in it.

 

 

I was born in 1986, the year of Chernobyl catastrophe. I spent my childhood mostly in Moscow, bright days with fluff falling down from the trees. I spent a lot of time with my grandmothers, I had 3 grandmothers and one grand-grandmother. In the summer I lived in a village. Our house had about 10 cats and 5 dogs, sometimes more. It was nice to explore around, to go into a forest on a lovely hill behind a small weedy pond. The world seemed so large. Small walks in the hills and fields to the big river were a big adventure. But when I was a teenager I was really a city boy. I didn't like to be out in nature so much. I just liked to spend time after school classes listening music and walking. Usually I went on a subway to the city center and just walked around for many hours before until it was late, and the really good times I spent with my friends.

My first photographs on a film camera where made during 2005 when I was studying at university. From the very beginning of university I was already involved in some other activities, I played music with my friends in a garage we built, and designed a music studio there, then I realized I did not want to go down that path. Gradually, I started to make photographs for magazines, galleries, sites and other customers. So I worked a few years, mostly as a reporter and portrait photographer.

The transition happened in a couple of ways. I was posting my photographs on a blog at livejournal.com at the time, I got a lot of comments and good responses about my photos. That inspired me more and more to try photography more seriously. Also I liked to spend time at rock concerts and my camera was with me, so I was not bored. At university I helped to organize some photo exhibitions in a hall, and my photography was also shown there a couple of times, so my classmates observed my photographic development. My parents had an issue with how I could earn money (from photography) they wanted to see me as something like a good businessman, but I was interested in making beautiful pictures, and believed that it could bring me some cash. So one time a photo editor from Afisha magazine noticed me and I started to shoot my first editorial projects. Slowly I started to work constantly, I think it happened just after I finished my studies.

I always liked spontaneous art. Like a musical improvisation. With many layers and possibilities to expand. I've been interested in Tibetan Buddhism for many years, I think it's important to work with yourself, meditate, see things clearly, to see reality like a magical illusion. This cosmogony describes how everything is made of 5 elements: water, fire, earth, wind, space. You can see how it compares to the human body or planets, I like how Buddhist philosophy has parallels to the quantum world. Science should try to use spiritual practice to explore new things. Because you can't get something new if you don't try to do it in a new way!

I also like street photography and I really enjoy walking with my Olympus OM2 on the street and catching cinematic moments on a black and white film. I value the moment very much. Every moment is important, and you shouldn't loose it, you've got to be there.

About one year ago, or little bit more, I realized that I needed to change something in my life. It happened because of some different reasons. I was interested in what happens in our world, and noone speaks aloud about it. I mean something like the situation in Mexican bay with BP oil, or what happened in Japan. I think it's crazy how we live sitting on a bomb like all these nuclear reactors…So I see how we live in over consumption. Fake values set up in many ways and all we can see is what happens now. Many things are changing, and many people are awake and start to change their lives. For me it's important to live according to my values, that I find right. And sure there is no right and wrong, it's relative. The area of my research is mostly deep inside myself but I'm very interested how the world reflects things inside me...