Alexander Chekmenev
Series: Citizens of Kyiv, 2022, ongoing
ENG Alexander Chekmenev (b. in 1969 in Luhansk, Ukraine, lives in Kyiv, Ukraine) started his career as a photographer in 1988 documenting people in his hometown located in a coal mining region that was seriously affected by the collapse of the Soviet Union. His photographs of this period reflect the roughness of social and political situations of the decade and form a unique archive of Ukraine's life.
Chekmenev portrays his sitters in a straight-out documentality, which is combined with a sincere interest towards the stories of people, and understanding of their characters and habits (e.g., projects "Street People", 1994-1999; "Passport", 1995). Along with that, the photographer creates series featuring the contemporary political situation in the country, showing recent events and their outcome ("Euromaidan", 2014; "War–Torn", 2014-2015; "War in Donbass", 2014-2016; "Deleted", 2018-2020; "Citizens of Kyiv", 2022-ongoing).
FR Alexander Chekmenev ( né en 1969 à Luhansk, Ukraine, habite à Kyiv, Ukraine ) a commencé sa carrière de photographe en 1988. Il documente alors la vie des gens de sa ville natale, sérieusement affectée par l'effondrement de l'Union soviétique, et située dans une région minière exploitant le charbon. Les photographies de cette période reflètent la difficulté des situations sociales et politiques d'une décennie, et elles constituent une archive unique de la vie en Ukraine.
Les portraits de Chekmenev sont explicitement documentaires, en combinaison avec un sincère intérêt pour les histoires de ses modèles, ainsi qu'une compréhension de leurs personnalités et de leurs habitudes (voir les projets "Street People", 1994-1999; "Passport", 1995). En outre, Chekmenev crée des séries à propos du climat politique contemporain dans l'ensemble de l'Ukraine, documentant certains évènements récents et leurs conséquences ("Euromaidan", 2014; "War–Torn", 2014-2015; "War in Donbass", 2014-2016; "Deleted", 2018-2020; "Citizens of Kyiv", 2022-ongoing).
Collections (selection):
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Museum of Kharkiv School of Photography (MOKSOP), Kharkiv, Ukraine
Ludwig Museum, Cologne, Germany
Mystetskyi Arsenal Museum, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Märkisches Museum, Witten, Germany
Personal exhibitions (selection):
2024 "Alexander Chekmenev. DONBASS. Photographic memories from 1994 onwards", Kunstmuseum Bayreuth (Bayreuth Art Museum), Germany
2023 "Faces of the War", HEP Vaud, Swiss
"Citizens of Kyiv" Artinbox Gallery, Prague, Check Republic
2022 "Citizens of Kyiv", Athens Democracy Forum, Athens, Greece
"Faces of War“, Hoogsteder Museum Foundation, Hague, Netherland
2020 "Forgotten Land“, Klaipeda Culture Communication Centre, Lithuania
2019 “Photo on passport”, Kyiv History Museum, Kyiv, Ukraine
2018 Märkisches Museum Witten, Germany
2017 "Passport", Folia Gallery, Paris, France
2016 Blue Sky Gallery, Portland, US
2015 Palffy Palace gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia
2014 Galerie Folia, In the context of the festival "Un week-end à l'Est, Paris, France
“Mad World”, Clara Maria Sels gallery, Dusseldorf, Germany
2013 Märkisches Museum, Witten, Germany
2012 “Joseph Huber Sura/Alexander Chekmenev: DONBASS“, Clara Maria Sels gallery, Düsseldorf, Germany
2007 "Black and white photography", Yagalereya gallery, Kyiv, Ukraine
2001 Zamek gallery, Poznan, Poland
2000 Winner of the European competition of documentary photography "Vevey", Switzerland
1994 1st prize "Ukrpressphoto", Kyiv, Ukraine, category "New Names"
Group exhibitions (selection):
2024 "Home: Ukrainian Photography, UK Words", Centre of Photography, Edinburgh, GB
"Generations of Resilience - 22 Ukrainian photographers", Hangar, Brussels, Belgium, as a part of the PhotoBrussels Festival, curators: Hangar and Kateryna Radchenko
2023 "Faces of Europe", by European Union National Institutes for Culture, Hotel de Ville, Paris, France
"Home. Perspectives", Open Eye Gallery, Liverpool, UK
2022 "Ukraine. The Path to Freedom", Noorderlicht Photography Festival, Groningen, Netherlands
"The New Abnormal", PHOXXI House of Photography of Deichtorhallen, Hambourg, Germany
2019 “Between Fire and Fire: Ukrainian Art Now”, Semperdepot, Vienna, Austria
Grenoble Photomonth, La Maison de l’Image, Grenoble, France
“Transit” (together with Viktor and Sergiy Kochetov), Odesa Photo Days 2019, State Litarature Museum, Odesa, Ukraine
Suwon, South Corea, "Suwon Photo"
“UPHA Made in Ukraine”, AKT art space, Kyiv, Ukraine
2018 "A Space of One's Own", PinchukArtCentre, Kyiv, Ukraine
“Permanent Revolution. Ukrainian art today”, Ludwig Museum, Budapest, Hungary
"Image Singulieres", Sete, France
2017 “Дослідницька платформа: Анонімне суспільство”, PinchukArtCentre, Kyiv, Ukraine,
2016 Suwon Photo festival, Suwon, South Corea, "Suwon Photo"
2014 Vienna Künstlerhaus
“LEGACY: Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, & The Caucasus”, Newcastle upon Tyne, Great Britain
“Shift: Ukraine in Crisis”, Third Floor Gallery, Cardiff, UK
Grand Prix "Photographer of the Year of Ukraine 2013"
2013 “The look behind | Der Blick dahinter”, Märkischen Museum in Witten, Witten, Germany
2012 First Kyiv International Biennale of Contemporary Art "Arsenal 2012"
2010 3rd Festival of documentary photographs, Poznan, Warsaw, Poland
“Якщо, Если, If”, Contemporary art museum PERMM, Perm, Russia
2008 “4×4. Ukrainian Contemporary Photography”, House of photography, Vilnius, Lithuania
2000 Winner of the European competition of documentary photography Vevey, Switzerland
Publications (selection):
"Citizens of Kyiv", C.J. Chivers, The New York Times Magazine, US, 2022
"Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska Takes On the Trauma Of War", Times Magazine, US, June 2022
"Witnessing a War", Times Magazine, US, 2022
"Inside Zelensky's World", Time Magazine, US, Apr 2022
"Quelle mobilisation pour les artistes ukrainiens?", Le Quotidien de l'Art, France, March 31, 2022
“Passport to eternity: photographing the forgotten elderly of Ukraine”, Bowcock, Simon, The Guardian, December 29, 2016
“Photo by Alexander Chekmenev. Incredible images from inside Soviet-era homes”, Merelli, Annalisa, Quartz, October 18, 2015
“Strong Arm of the State: Alexander Chekmenev’s Post-Independence Ukraine Passport Photos”, Shuster, Simon, Time Magazine, May 13, 2014
“Tangled Identities and Allegiances in Ukraine”, James Estrin, The New York Times Magazine, May 15, 2014
Bibliography:
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Faces of War", KERBER, Germany, 2024
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Pharmakon / Ambulance", 89books, Italie, 2021
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Lilies", MOKSOP, Ukraine, 2020
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Passport", Dewi Lewis Publishing, UK, 2017
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Donbass". Kehrer Verlag Heidelberg, Germany, 2011
"4х4: ukrainian and lithuanian contemporary photography", ArtBook Publishing, Ukraine, 2008
ENG Alexander Chekmenev (b. in 1969 in Luhansk, Ukraine, lives in Kyiv, Ukraine) started his career as a photographer in 1988 documenting people in his hometown located in a coal mining region that was seriously affected by the collapse of the Soviet Union. His photographs of this period reflect the roughness of social and political situations of the decade and form a unique archive of Ukraine's life.
Chekmenev portrays his sitters in a straight-out documentality, which is combined with a sincere interest towards the stories of people, and understanding of their characters and habits (e.g., projects "Street People", 1994-1999; "Passport", 1995). Along with that, the photographer creates series featuring the contemporary political situation in the country, showing recent events and their outcome ("Euromaidan", 2014; "War–Torn", 2014-2015; "War in Donbass", 2014-2016; "Deleted", 2018-2020; "Citizens of Kyiv", 2022-ongoing).
FR Alexander Chekmenev ( né en 1969 à Luhansk, Ukraine, habite à Kyiv, Ukraine ) a commencé sa carrière de photographe en 1988. Il documente alors la vie des gens de sa ville natale, sérieusement affectée par l'effondrement de l'Union soviétique, et située dans une région minière exploitant le charbon. Les photographies de cette période reflètent la difficulté des situations sociales et politiques d'une décennie, et elles constituent une archive unique de la vie en Ukraine.
Les portraits de Chekmenev sont explicitement documentaires, en combinaison avec un sincère intérêt pour les histoires de ses modèles, ainsi qu'une compréhension de leurs personnalités et de leurs habitudes (voir les projets "Street People", 1994-1999; "Passport", 1995). En outre, Chekmenev crée des séries à propos du climat politique contemporain dans l'ensemble de l'Ukraine, documentant certains évènements récents et leurs conséquences ("Euromaidan", 2014; "War–Torn", 2014-2015; "War in Donbass", 2014-2016; "Deleted", 2018-2020; "Citizens of Kyiv", 2022-ongoing).
Collections (selection):
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Museum of Kharkiv School of Photography (MOKSOP), Kharkiv, Ukraine
Ludwig Museum, Cologne, Germany
Mystetskyi Arsenal Museum, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Märkisches Museum, Witten, Germany
Personal exhibitions (selection):
2024 "Alexander Chekmenev. DONBASS. Photographic memories from 1994 onwards", Kunstmuseum Bayreuth (Bayreuth Art Museum), Germany
2023 "Faces of the War", HEP Vaud, Swiss
"Citizens of Kyiv" Artinbox Gallery, Prague, Check Republic
2022 "Citizens of Kyiv", Athens Democracy Forum, Athens, Greece
"Faces of War“, Hoogsteder Museum Foundation, Hague, Netherland
2020 "Forgotten Land“, Klaipeda Culture Communication Centre, Lithuania
2019 “Photo on passport”, Kyiv History Museum, Kyiv, Ukraine
2018 Märkisches Museum Witten, Germany
2017 "Passport", Folia Gallery, Paris, France
2016 Blue Sky Gallery, Portland, US
2015 Palffy Palace gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia
2014 Galerie Folia, In the context of the festival "Un week-end à l'Est, Paris, France
“Mad World”, Clara Maria Sels gallery, Dusseldorf, Germany
2013 Märkisches Museum, Witten, Germany
2012 “Joseph Huber Sura/Alexander Chekmenev: DONBASS“, Clara Maria Sels gallery, Düsseldorf, Germany
2007 "Black and white photography", Yagalereya gallery, Kyiv, Ukraine
2001 Zamek gallery, Poznan, Poland
2000 Winner of the European competition of documentary photography "Vevey", Switzerland
1994 1st prize "Ukrpressphoto", Kyiv, Ukraine, category "New Names"
Group exhibitions (selection):
2024 "Home: Ukrainian Photography, UK Words", Centre of Photography, Edinburgh, GB
"Generations of Resilience - 22 Ukrainian photographers", Hangar, Brussels, Belgium, as a part of the PhotoBrussels Festival, curators: Hangar and Kateryna Radchenko
2023 "Faces of Europe", by European Union National Institutes for Culture, Hotel de Ville, Paris, France
"Home. Perspectives", Open Eye Gallery, Liverpool, UK
2022 "Ukraine. The Path to Freedom", Noorderlicht Photography Festival, Groningen, Netherlands
"The New Abnormal", PHOXXI House of Photography of Deichtorhallen, Hambourg, Germany
2019 “Between Fire and Fire: Ukrainian Art Now”, Semperdepot, Vienna, Austria
Grenoble Photomonth, La Maison de l’Image, Grenoble, France
“Transit” (together with Viktor and Sergiy Kochetov), Odesa Photo Days 2019, State Litarature Museum, Odesa, Ukraine
Suwon, South Corea, "Suwon Photo"
“UPHA Made in Ukraine”, AKT art space, Kyiv, Ukraine
2018 "A Space of One's Own", PinchukArtCentre, Kyiv, Ukraine
“Permanent Revolution. Ukrainian art today”, Ludwig Museum, Budapest, Hungary
"Image Singulieres", Sete, France
2017 “Дослідницька платформа: Анонімне суспільство”, PinchukArtCentre, Kyiv, Ukraine,
2016 Suwon Photo festival, Suwon, South Corea, "Suwon Photo"
2014 Vienna Künstlerhaus
“LEGACY: Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, & The Caucasus”, Newcastle upon Tyne, Great Britain
“Shift: Ukraine in Crisis”, Third Floor Gallery, Cardiff, UK
Grand Prix "Photographer of the Year of Ukraine 2013"
2013 “The look behind | Der Blick dahinter”, Märkischen Museum in Witten, Witten, Germany
2012 First Kyiv International Biennale of Contemporary Art "Arsenal 2012"
2010 3rd Festival of documentary photographs, Poznan, Warsaw, Poland
“Якщо, Если, If”, Contemporary art museum PERMM, Perm, Russia
2008 “4×4. Ukrainian Contemporary Photography”, House of photography, Vilnius, Lithuania
2000 Winner of the European competition of documentary photography Vevey, Switzerland
Publications (selection):
"Citizens of Kyiv", C.J. Chivers, The New York Times Magazine, US, 2022
"Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska Takes On the Trauma Of War", Times Magazine, US, June 2022
"Witnessing a War", Times Magazine, US, 2022
"Inside Zelensky's World", Time Magazine, US, Apr 2022
"Quelle mobilisation pour les artistes ukrainiens?", Le Quotidien de l'Art, France, March 31, 2022
“Passport to eternity: photographing the forgotten elderly of Ukraine”, Bowcock, Simon, The Guardian, December 29, 2016
“Photo by Alexander Chekmenev. Incredible images from inside Soviet-era homes”, Merelli, Annalisa, Quartz, October 18, 2015
“Strong Arm of the State: Alexander Chekmenev’s Post-Independence Ukraine Passport Photos”, Shuster, Simon, Time Magazine, May 13, 2014
“Tangled Identities and Allegiances in Ukraine”, James Estrin, The New York Times Magazine, May 15, 2014
Bibliography:
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Faces of War", KERBER, Germany, 2024
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Pharmakon / Ambulance", 89books, Italie, 2021
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Lilies", MOKSOP, Ukraine, 2020
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Passport", Dewi Lewis Publishing, UK, 2017
Chekmenev, Alexander. "Donbass". Kehrer Verlag Heidelberg, Germany, 2011
"4х4: ukrainian and lithuanian contemporary photography", ArtBook Publishing, Ukraine, 2008