Artists

Olesia Khomenko

Born 1980 in Kyiv, Ukraine, where she currently lives and works. She graduated from the National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture of Ukraine, then was a resident at the Centre for Contemporary Art at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (2005–2006) and the Leipzig International Art Program (2008). Khomenko is co-founder and member of the R.E.P. artist group and the Hudrada curatorial association. She was nominated for PinchukArtCentre Prize in 2009 and 2011, the Future Generation Art Prize and the Kazimir Malevich Artist Award (both 2012).

The paintings of Olesia Khomenko are narrative reflections on subjects such as the proletarian hero and postsoviet space, landscape and architecture.

Recent exhibitions:

2013 - “Ukrainan News”, CSW Zamek Ujazdowsky, Warsaw, Poland

2012 - “Practice”, Lavra gallery, Kyiv, Ukraine

2012 - “Future Generations Art Prize”*, PinchukArtCentre, Kyiv, Ukraine

2012 - “Paintings only. The New Ukrainian Figurative", Special project of Kyiv art Contemporary, Art Arsenal, Kyiv, Ukraine

2012 - “Best times, worst times”, main project of Kyiv Biennale Arsenale 2012, Art Arsenal, Kyiv, Ukraine.

For the exhibition of the 20 shortlisted artists for the PinchukArtCentre Prize 2013, Khomenko takes a new step in her artistic practice, presenting an animation video made from her paintings. The video shows the face of a mother who pretends falling asleep over her child. Khomenko places the viewer in the role of the child by projecting the animation onto the single large-scale canvas used to paint the faces. Through the canvas, she maintains the memory of painting and gives a physical depth to the projected animation.