Shokhov Nikita

Nikita Shokhov (1988, Kamensk-Uralsky) Nikita Shokhov is a visual artist and filmmaker from Russia, works in the USA.

Nikita Shokhov is a visual artist, the human being is the central subject of his practice along with philosophical agendas. Works with XR, documentary, volumetric video, photography, and film. Recipient of the World Press Photo and Nova Art awards and a shortlist of Cannes XR Development Showcase. Studied immersive environments in Virginia Tech; experimental filmmaking in California Institute of the Arts with Betsy Bromberg, where he also staged a theater piece augmented with VR; and documentary photography in Rodchenko Art School Moscow with Igor Mukhin; he worked in The Watermill Center theater residency with Robert Wilson on developing his opera productions.

He had shows and screenings in such institutions as Moscow Museum of Contemporary Art, Manifesta Biennale 10 (St. Petersburg), 6th Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art, 5th Photoquai Biennial (Paris), GRAD Gallery (London), Baltic Biennale of Photography (Kaliningrad), Moscow Multimedia Art Museum, Spring / Break Art Show (New York), Redcat Cinema (Los Angeles), Cube.Moscow, Yeltsin Center (Yekaterinburg), ACM IMX (online), Gallery 11.12 (Moscow), Art Doc Fest (Moscow), CYFEST (St. Petersburg), Iragui Gallery.

Has been published in The New York Times, The Guardian, Le Monde, Apollo, Harper's Bazaar Art, ARTnews, Art Observer, Interview Russia, L'Express, Courrier International, China Newsweek, Calvert Journal, L'Officiel, Kommersant, Afisha, Colta.ru

ARTIST STATEMENT

Visual art for me is a way to study the human condition in the 21st century applying emerging technologies. I use different media from photography to immersive environments, and what’s not changing is that all imagery is created with a lens, and it’s pushing the boundaries of what documentary means at a particular moment. My next goal is bringing spectacular life-changing experiences to those who build the future, inspiring their love, beauty, and balance.

I wish you’re staying on a bleeding edge with my art lab. (Nikita)

PROJECT SCAN

While belonging to the documentary tradition, SCAN goes beyond the boundaries of traditional “direct” photography. The use of slit scanning photography allows me to capture 40 seconds of reality in one image. Movable objects, such as cars and people, undergo a process of plastic deformation evoking the spirit of photography in the era of "post-truth". We see a crowd as one united body. 

My subject matter includes holiday celebrations, political rallies, military parades, and sacred procession. These activities, which invariably support dominant ideologies, fulfill the human need for belonging. In this time of social distancing, images of mass gatherings have acquired additional meanings. SCAN explores the phenomenon of mass processions as a manifestation of “carnival” in its more traditional role; an escape from fear. 

I observe that the fashion of merging with the crowd for Russians is very natural while Americans try to stand out of the crowd in every possible way. Russian mentality flourishes in a communal experience, while Americans often formally participate in official events and then go home to express their true nature within their family. (Nikita Shokhov)

Nikita Shokhov’s series of photographs subverts the capacity of the photographic image to represent its subject from a single perspective. In the place of taking an instant photograph, he scans a scene for 41 seconds, producing a fragmented and distorted re- sult. This process models a static image in a dynamic way, enabling the viewer to see the subject of the work from multiple viewpoints. Shokhov often selects official demonstrations and political marches as his subject matter, drawing attention to how such events are presented. Such an experiment, casting doubt on the veracity of images and highlighting their potential for manipulation recalls not only the photomontage tradition created by Vertov and Eisenstein but also the more recent work of Gerhard Richter. (Sergey Khachaturov, curator)

EDUCATION:

• 2019-2021 Virginia Tech, MFA in Creative Technologies
• 2018-2019 California Institute of the Arts, MFA in Film and Video
• 2010-2013 Rodchenko Art School Moscow, BFA in Photography and Multimedia
• 2009 Sverdlov Film Studio, Cinematography

AWARDS / GRANTS / RESIDENCIES:

• 2020 Cannes XR Development Showcase, shortlist, France
• 2020 Audi Born Digital Award, shortlist, Russia
• 2019 Nova Art award, finalist, Russia
• 2019 Diversity Grant, CalArts, USA
• 2018 Cosmoscow Foundation, Russia
• 2018 Lilian Disney scholarship, CalArts, USA
• 2017 Puffin Foundation grant, NY, USA
• 2017 Indiana Humanities grant, USA
• 2016 Watermill Center Summer Residency, USA
• 2016 Award for Young Photographers, Russian Union of Photography, Moscow
• 2015 Silver Camera Award, Russian Department of Culture, Moscow
• 2014 World Press Photo award, Amsterdam

SOLO SHOWS / SCREENINGS:

• 2021 — "Last March", Cube.Moscow
• 2021 — "Last March", Yeltsin Center, Yekaterinburg
• 2020 — “Scan|Klaxon”, 11.12 Gallery, Moscow
• 2019 — “Klaxon”, Cyberfest, Cyland, St. Petersburg
• 2019 — “Klaxon” CalArts Bijou Fest, Los Angeles
• 2019 — “Ice”, Anhydrite Biennial of Media Arts, Barbarossa Hoehle, Germany
• 2018 — "Scan: Where the Carnival Goes", Museum of Moscow
• 2017 — “The Last March”, collaboration with Naum Medovoy, Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Moscow
• 2017 — “Ice” screening at ARTDOCFEST film festival, Moscow
• 2015 — “Sacred Procession”, Baltic Biennial of Photography, Kaliningrad
• 2015 — “Children: personal space”, Gallery Peresvetov, Moscow
• 2014 — “Moscow Nightlife”, Moscow Biennial of Photography
• 2013 — “Black Sea vacations”, Biennial Fashion and Style in Photography, Moscow
• 2012 — “Empty Hills. The Space of Joy”, Galerie Iragui, Moscow

SELECTED GROUP SHOWS / SCREENINGS / PERFORMANCES:

• 2020 — BRIDGE TO METAVERSE by Snark.
• 2020 — “Möbius Loop” by a-s-t-r-a gallery, Spring/Break Art Show, New York
• 2020 — “Sentiments”, Snap Creative Challenge, ACM IMX
• 2019 — “Darling Angel”, Redcat, Los Angeles
• 2019 — “The Last Dodo”, CalArts Digital Expo, Los Angeles
• 2018 — “Moscow - New York" screening, EEP Berlin
• 2018 — “SCAN”, 8th Tashkent International Biennial of Contemporary Art, Tashkent
• 2016 — “ICE”, FADA: House of Madness, Watermill Center, Water Mill, New York
• 2015 — “Sacred Procession”, The 5th Photoquai, Musée du Quai Branly, Paris
• 2015 — “GAZ. Hope”, The 6th Moscow Biennial, Moscow
• 2015 — “Borderlands”, Gallery for Russian Arts and Design, London
• 2014 — “Twelve Reflective Photographers”, Manifesta 10, St. Petersburg2014 — “Young”, GUP Gallery, Amsterdam
• 2014 — “Moscow. Barocco”, Triumph Gallery, Moscow
• 2014 — “Young”, GUP Gallery, Amsterdam
• 2014 — “Artistic invention of yourself and the pure enjoyment of life and love”, Austrian Cultural Forum, Moscow
• 2014 — “Moskovia. Research”, All-Russian Decorative Art Museum, Moscow
• 2013 — “Stability. Ghosts”, Random gallery, Moscow
• 2013 — “Trash”, RuArts gallery, Moscow
• 2013 — “The Happy End”, Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow
• 2012 — “The Stone Flower”, National Center of Contemporary Art, Moscow
• 2011 — “Life in Motion”, International Center of Photography, New York

ART FAIRS / ART BOOK FAIRS::

• 2021 — “PAIN” AR performance, InArt Gallery, Cosmoscow international art fair
• 2021 — “SCAN”, a-s-t-r-a gallery, BLAZAR young art fair, Moscow
• 2020 — ENTER art fair, Copenhagen
• 2020 — BLAZAR, Moscow
• 2020 — CADAF Online
• 2019 — Printed Matter Art Fair Book, Los Angeles
• 2018 — I Never Read Art Book Fair, Basel
• 2018 — VOLUMES, independent book festival, Zurich
• 2014, 2015 — Photography Fair, Moscow
• 2014 — Cosmoscow Art Fair, Moscow

Selected publication