Zhandarova Alyona
Alyona Zhandarova (1988) lives and works in Ivanovo, Russia.
She studied at the European Institute of Design IED, Department of Art Photography in Madirida, Spain.
The illusory nature of the external world, the exploration of human beliefs and social boundaries, the uniqueness of each person, continuity and the interconnection of inner space with external conditioning are the main areas of Alyona Zhandarova's research. Interacting with the world through photography, she translates her own experience into the language of visual symbols. Alyona was honored with the Zeiss Photography Awards in 2020. Her work has been shown at the International Photography and Art Festival PhEST in Italy in 2021, Aarhus Center for Contemporary Art in Denmark in 2012, Singapore International Photography Festival in Singapore in 2020 and others. Her works are included in the collections of Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts in Japan, Meyrin Cultural Center in Switzerland and many private collections.
Alyona feels the world as a single living organism, subtly feeling the invisible connections between all beings, events, the past and what has not yet happened. The themes of the illusory nature of what is happening, its multilayeredness and cyclicality are the anchor point of her artistic practice.
Exploring the forms and structure of the interaction between the inner and the outer, Alyona makes an attempt to manifest and organize their relationship visually. Absurdity and play are the main methods she uses to translate from the cosmic (invisible) to the human (manifested), in an attempt to find answers to the question “How to remember the magic of a gray day, being absorbed by routine and everyday life?”.
EDUCATION:
- 2012 — European Institute of Design IED Madrid, Faculty of Fine Arts, Madrid, Spain
Photography, Madrid, Spain
SOLO SHOWS:
- 2021 — “Hidden Motherhood”, PhEST, International Photography and Art Festival, Monopoli, Italy
- 2020 — “Triangle-flavored mashed potatoes”, Fotografika Gallery,
St. Petersburg, Russia (online tour) - 2018 — “Mashed Potatoes with the Flavor of Triangles”, Cortona on the Move Photofestival, Cortona, Italy
- 2012 — “The intimate autumn behind the facade” Aarhus Center for Contemporary Art, Aarhus, Denmark
SELECTED SOLO SHOWS:
- 2023 — “Sympathetic Interactions”, Ivanovo Museum and Exhibition Center as part of the festival ‘The First Factory of Avant-Garde’ in cooperation with AZ Museums
- 2020 — “Hidden Motherhood”, Singapore International Photography Festival SIPF, Singapore
- 2019 — “Young Portfolio Acquisitions,” Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts, Kiyosato, Japan
- 2018 — MOPLA Projections, Month of Photography at Los Angeles Group Show, Los Angeles, USA
- 2017 — “City of Brides” as part of photo bookfest “Novy Razvorot”, Lumiere Brothers Center for Photography, Moscow, Russia
- 2017 — “Photographing the Female” exhibition, FOCUS PhotoFestival, Mumbai,
India - 2017 — “Triangle-flavored Mashed Potatoes”, Hellerau Photography Awards Exhibition, European Center of Arts, Dresden, Germany
- 2016 — “Bride City”, Suwon PASA Festival, Suwon, South Korea
- 2016 — “Special Edition: Photobook in Russia”, Metenkov House Photographic Museum, Yekaterinburg, Russia
- 2015 — “Seeing is Believing”, Encontros da Imagem Photo Festival Braga, Portugal ‘She Loves me, She Loves me Not’, Center of Photography, France
- 2014 — Pingyao Photography Festival, Pingyao, China
- 2013 — “Passage”, Meyrin Cultural Center, Geneva, Switzerland
- 2012 — Fotovisa Festival, Krasnodar, Russia “Cornflower tea and melting chocolate”, Krasnodar, Russia.
- 2012 — “Me, Myself and I”, Anzenberger Gallery, Vienna, Austria
- 2012 — Copenhagen Photo Festival, Copenhagen, Denmark
- 2012 — “Migration and Nomadic Living in the 21st Century”, Backlight Photo Festival, Tampere Art Museum, Tampere, Finland.
SELECTED CONTESTS AND GRANTS:
- 2020 — Zeiss Photography Awards Shortlist
- 2019 — Shortlisted for the Cortona on the Move Photobook Awards, Cortona, Italy. Prix Pictet Award nominee
- 2018 — Gallery Image shortlist, Aarhus Dummy Awards, Aarhus, Denmark
- 2018 — Photobookfest Shortlist, Lumiere Brothers Center for Photography, Moscow, Russia. Lumiere Brothers Center for Photography, Moscow, Russia
- 2014 — Lucie Foundation Scholarship Finalist, USA
- 2013 — Finalist of Lens Culture Photography Award
- 2012 — Finalist of the Fotovisa Festival, Krasnodar, Russia
- 2012 — Winner of Encontros da Imagem Photofestival, Braga, Portugal
- 2012 — Winner of Luceo Student Project Award, USA
- 2011 — IED Master of Fine Art Photograph, Madrid, Spain
Works
