Pavlovka Art Gallery

Photo Kyiv Fair - large-scale photo event with major goals for advancement of photography art in Ukraine, the fair brings together foreign and Ukrainian galleries, international funds and institutions, embassies and business companies, who actively support the development of the country's cultural image. More information at https://www.photokyiv.com/

Every print is unique. Alexander Primak

In the process of creating a photo Alexander Primak likes the uncertainty most of all. The moment he presses the shutter button, he doesn’t know what's going to happen at the end. Then he waits for the film to be developed, decides what he will do next, which method of photographic printing will use. Alexander uses various alternative photographic printing techniques: such as Oil Printing, Cyanotype, Calotypy, Humbichromat Printing, Gumoyl Printing, Carbon Printing, Lit-Printing and others. The results are fascinating.

Just recently Alexander Primak has finished a major project "Lifestyle", which consists of 97 prints. Part of this project was presented at Photo Kyiv 2018. The whole series are published in the Oil-print technique and tell about the lives of people in the northern border regions of Ukraine. The project has been already shown in "I Gallery" of Pavel Gudimov in Kyiv and in Museum of Photographic Art in Khmelnytskyi. Both institutions have prints from this series in their collections. Prints have been also purchased for private collections in America, Russia, France and Ukraine. Three works are in the collection of the Ukrainian Museum of New York.

Andrey Lobov embraces the idea of conceptual photography. He is attracted to abstraction as a potential to go beyond the usual perception of a photo image. At the same time, he uses the practice of classical photography, where the composition and the moment of time for taking the photograph are significant.

Photography is the main medium of art for Andrey Lobov, and the theme of “man and nature” is the most appealing motive.

Andrii Parakhin is interested in philosophy and plot. For him, photography is the art of observation and analysis. Based on this perception he creates his own stories. Thereby, for several years  Andreii has been working on photostory called "The Eastern Tale". The idea was to explore the city and the area through seen natural signs and symbols. Using local legends and tales, Andreii creates canvases of the world around him.

At the Photo Kyiv Fair Andrii Parakhin presents works from the “Terrikonomania” series, taking the inspiration from man-made slagheaps. For number of years Andrii Parakhin lived in Donetsk, Ukraine and was inspired by the strength of the slagheaps. They are striking in their beauty and power, as if showing that being a result of human activity they now possess greater strength, becoming an integral part of the natural landscape. “Slagheaps are expressive images that have the mystical power to attract attention and awake strong emotions,” comments Andreii Parakhin.

The series inspires to reflect on the constant confrontation and at the same time the important coexistence of man and nature.

The main theme of Dmitry Openko’s photography is the city, its geometry, rhythm, light and shadow. Dmitry chooses scenes intuitively, focusing on the lines and textures of the city. Often, he is attracted by color accents, a combination of natural and urban landscapes. City life photography reveals its rhythm. For the author, the city is different every day, it changes as a living creature, therefore it is always thrilling.

Dmitry was interested in photography during his school years, then this childhood passion developed into a matter of life. “In photography I am attracted by the spontaneity of the result, the ability to see real life through camera lens. At the same time I need to be constantly ready for the most unexpected shot. It is very important to be attentive and be able to see new things in the most usual situations,” comments Dmitry Openko.

The works with strong contrast pattern are dominated among those made by Dmitry Openko. At the time of making a photo, he focuses on composition and tone of the photograph. The decision on whether the photo will be color or monochrome is made depending on the plot during post production process.