Romantic Collection. Love songs by Nikolay Oleynikov

August 24–31

Paperworks Gallery and Summer in New Holland present the exhibition Romantic Collection. Love songs by Nikolay Oleynikov which will open on August 24 in New Holland's art gallery. It features works by the young artist and activist Nikolay Oleynikov.

Nikolay Oleynikov is renowned for his activism and his graphic works; murals, drawings and flags, deeply influenced by his political and social engagement. Oleynikov is the prototype of the artiste engagé; one of those artists able to powerfully translate his ideas in his works and his attitudes stay at the core of his artistic production. As an example, his flags are used in street protests and parades but become a powerful object when shown in museum or galleries.

The show Romantic Collection features a selection of graphic works of the artist and a brand new series of graphics which will be included in his upcoming publication Sex of the Oppressed. The title of the selection of works presented in New Holland is eloquent; a collection can be defined as a self-portrait, a synthesis of ideas and interest, dreams and utopias. It is deeply personal. So Oleynikov’s Romantic Collection evokes a more intimate dimension, witnessed by the format of the works. Each one is like a refrain; a part of a song that becomes an intimate narration. Using the very intimate medium of hand drawings and ink on paper, Oleynikov brings together personal reactions and intimacy in a very political way, reflecting the dramatic changes recently experienced by Russian society, and more precisely resonating with the so called "anti-gay law" and its possible consequences.

Nikolay Oleynikov

Nikolay Oleynikov is a Moscow based artist and activist, member of the creative platform Chto Delat?, and editor of the platform's newspaper, member of the editorial board of Moscow Art Magazine (2011), co-founder of the Learning Film Group and of the May Congress of Creative Workers, member of the band Arkady Kots. Oleynikov is well-known for his didactic murals and graphic works recalling the tradition of the Soviet monumental school, comics culture, surrealism and punk culture. Oleynikov's works have been exhibited in numerous international solo and collective shows including at The State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow; Paperworks Gallery, Moscow; ICA, London; The New Museum, New York; Fargfabriken, Stockholm; VanAbbemuseum, Eindhoven; Serralves Museum, Porto; Moderna Galerija, Ljubljana; Komplot, Bruxelles; Musée d´Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris – MAM/ARC, Paris; Cittadellarte – Fondazione Pistoletto, Biella; Museo dell Arte Contemporaneo Luiggi Pecci, Prato; Scipione Culture House, Lecce; Lungomare, Bolzano; KIBLA, Maribor; <rotor>, Graz. He also participated in the 4th Moscow Biennale, Moscow; The Baltic Triennale of Contemporary Art, Vilnius; The Quadriennalle U-TURN, Kopenhagen; The 11th Istanbul Biennale, Istanbul; Evento 2011, Bordeaux. Oleynikov's public works can be found in Helsinki, Bordeaux, Porto, Welling School, London.

Paperworks Gallery

Paperworks Gallery was founded in 2005 and began it's activity by working with works on paper by contemporary Russian artists. Today the gallery exhibits all genres of contemporary art from conceptualism to street art and new figurativism. Among Paperworks artists are Yuri Albert, Vinogradov and Dubosarsky, Polina Kanis, Taus Machacheva, Nikolay Oleynikov, Uliya Zastava and others. The directors of the gallery are Evgeny Mitta and Elena Bakanova.