Artist statement

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I studied fine arts, art philosophy and performance in Moscow and have been living in Berlin since 2017.

   I understand myself as a feminist multidisciplinary artist and work on taboo and social topics as well as the whole range of our personal experiences and how they relate to the individual topics through various media (painting / installation and performance / video and drawing / graphic novel).

   My work deals with topics such as memory, violence, trauma, our relationship to our bodies, and the personal as political. I’m primarily concerned with how the private and public can influence, transform, construct, represent and deconstruct reality.

   I work with social issues  and adhere to the principle of maximum connection to personal experience and contact with the topic. The idea of art’s ​​social responsibility is significant to me.  The sincerity of my research and the engagement of the viewer is essential. Therefore, my projects are often participatory.

   My painting / drawing work flows into graphic novels and in space installations.

   Art should evoke emotions. They make you think. The artist who tries to convey their feelings with their art understands how others will react to their statement, gesture, action. Will the viewer smile or squeeze their fists and become angry? It is very important.

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Yanka Smetanina CV_en_short

Janka Smetanina CV_de

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CV 

Education

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School of Performance Pyrfir. Certification. Performance Art.  Moscow, Russia. 2017

Institute for Contemporary Art BAZA. Certification. Philosophy of Art.  Moscow, Russia. 2017

Institute for Problems of Contemporary Art. M.F.A.,Project Management,  Moscow, Russia. 2003

State University of Print Media. M.F.A., Artistic Graphics, Moscow, Russia. 2001

School of Cinematographic Animation. U.S. High School Equivalent. Moscow, Russia. 1997

Solo Exhibitions

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2020 "Repatriates. The lost branches." Galerie der Einheit. Potsdam, (D)

2020 "Exercises." Vinogradov Gallery, Berlin, (D)

2020 “Forgive us Rosa Luxemburg”, Lauschengrif, Berlin, Germany

2018 “Refrain”, BLAH BLAH Projektraum, , Berlin, Germany

2017 "Hand swing", Fine Art Gallery, Moscow, Russia

2015 "Texte"Simon Mraz Residence, Russian-Austrian Cultural Forum, , Moscow, Russia 

2014 Performance "The Stairs", ArtPlay,  Moscow, Russia

2014 “Why do I always feel guilty?", Zverev Center for Contemporary Art, Moscow, Russia

2012 "Stage 2", Zverev Center for Contemporary Art, Moscow, Russia

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Public Collections

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Thoughts on the Road Series, Fund of Smirnow Sorokin, Moscow, Russia. Acquired 2015

Works are in private collections of Mikhail Sidlin, Simon Mraz, Mikhail Alshibaya and others in  Russia, Germany, and Canada. Works also acquired by collectors at auctions such as Vladey and VZGT 2 in Moscow, Russia.

Honors and Awards

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2020 Preis von „Jury der Kommission „30 Jahre Friedliche Revolution und Deutsche Einheit“ (D)

Top 100 of the Rated Artists, Rating In Art, Moscow, Russia. 2018

Top 100 of the Rated Artists, Rating In Art, Moscow, Russia. 2017

Just Award 1st Prize, Moscow, Russia. 2014

Nomination "Project of the Year", Kandinsky Prize, Moscow, Russia. 2013

Special Award,Scotch, Moscow, Russia. 2010 

Membership

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Professional Association of Visual Artists Berlin berlin e.V., joined 2018

Moscow Artists Union, joined 2002

Curatorial projects

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2016 - Cultural Center ZIL, Festival  "Another Actor's Theater", Moscow, Russia

2014 - Gallery A3, "Behind Castle", Moscow, Russia

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Selected Group Exhibitions

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2021 2 Trienale zeitgenössisches Kunst. Fünfte Welle. Museum zeitgenössisches Kunst Gara-

ge. Moskau. RUS

2020 “Body”. ORI Künstlerische Forum, Berlin, Germany

2019 “Unreal desires”. Somos, Berlin, Germany

2019 “Berliner Transit”. Omsk, Russia

2019 “Interwinnen Bodies”, Somos, Berlin, Germany

2019 “Grandma”. Old house. Berlin, Germany

2018  "Hair". Moscow Modern Art Museum

2018  “Present continuous”, Zverev Center for Contemporary Art, Moscow, Russia

2018 Uzbekistan Biennale, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

2018 "There and now!" Manege, Moscow, Russia  

2018 "Apology of Delusions", Moscow Modern Art Museum, Moscow, Russia  

2018 "Exercise Sports Health2. Berlin, Germany

2018 "The new signs of existence", Quedlinburg, Germany

2018 "Survive", Berlin Art Week, Germany

2018 "Divinity Perspectives of a Higher Power", Berlin, Germany

2017 "11 New. Exhibition of Young Performance Artists ", State Gallery on Solyanka Street, Moscow

2017 "The pain and the will", Stella Art Foundation, Moscow, Russia  

2017 "On the way to eternity", Moscow, Russia  

2017 "Participants temporarily unavailable", "Moscow, Russia  

2016 "Psycho", factory, Moscow, Russia  

2016 "Raw / Cooked", Moscow Modern Art Museum, Russia  

2016 Social and Artistic Project "Other Atmosphere", Children's Hospital in Tushino, Moscow, Russia  

2015 "Her", Vladivostok, Russia, Russia    

2015 "Russia vs. Russia ", Berlin, Germany

2015 "The Studio 2015", Moscow Modern Art Museum, Russia  

2015 "The art communities", Moscow Museum, Russia  

2015 "Like it!", Bogorodskoe Gallery, Moscow, Russia  

2015 "A - the art, F - the feminism", Moscow, Russia  

2015 "Co-Penetration", Nagornaya Gallery, 6th Moscow Biennial of Contemporary Art, Russia   

2015 "Panoptikum", special program of the 6th Moscow Biennial of Contemporary Art, Russia    

2015 "Pedartudar", Saint Petersburg, Russia  

2014 Exhibitions "Just Award", laureate, Moscow, Russia  

2014 "Behind Castle", Gallery A3, Moscow, Russia  

2013 Long List of the Kandinsky Prize, Udarnik, Moscow, Russia  

2013 "Feminist Pencil 2", 5th Moscow Biennial of Contemporary Art, Moscow, Sankt Peterburg, Russia, Oslo, Finland

2012 "The Way, the Railway", ArtPlay, Moscow, Russia  

2011 "The End", apartment gallery «The End», Moscow, Russia  

2011 "The Interior", Factory, 4th Moscow Biennial of Contemporary Art, Russia  

2011 "Freedom of choice", Factory, Moscow, Russia  

2010 "ART-Moscow", special prize Scotch, Moscow, Russia  

2009 "Russian Lettrism", Central House of Artists, Moscow, Russia  

Festivals

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2015 festival "It can!", Krasnodar

2015 "Autumn Festival", Moscow

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Further Training and Education

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Projeckraum Mehrwert Kunst, Berlin, Germany. 2019

Art Summer School "What should I do?", Berlin 2015

Workshop “Qvirfemaklzia ", Vienna, Austria. 2014

Teaching

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Workshop "Other Atmosphere", Children's Hospital in Tushino, Moscow, Russia. 2016

Master Class "Graphic novella", Kazan, Russia. 2016

College named Ivan Fedorov. Sabject: illustration, collage. 2014-2015

Painting