About
Sergey Sapozhnikov included in the list of the Best Russian contemporary artists (ARTEEX).
His photographs seem to be based on the structural principle of instability and are in a state of temporary equilibrium - they look like solid formal compositions that are about to fall apart, just like skewed structures that Sapozhnikov often portrays. His favorite plot is a human figure in interaction with space, when it tries to adapt to different environments and in the process causes a physical collision of organic and inorganic matter - body, nature, architecture and objects.
The space of action is formed by accretions and heaps: both landscapes and interiors resemble landfills — shapeless piles of debris, collapsing buildings, parts of the natural landscape that have fallen into disrepair or are aggressively attacking in areas that were once inhabited. The referent — and quite realistic — is the suburb, the border area between town and country, a place of vagrancy and exclusion. Nevertheless, most of the photos clearly demonstrate the artificiality and staging, neat collection of elements in the composition. In fact, these works grew out of installation intervention, an experiment with space and objects, where the photograph initially performed the documenting function. Logs, bushes, pieces of brick walls are constantly evolving elements of a dilapidated environment in which the artist brings household items, rags, ropes and nets, using them as tools to create surrealistic, defective, unfit for housing landscapes. Among such decorations, the characters are looking for a place for themselves, an opportunity to fit into the atmosphere and exist in it (I. Calderoni).
In 2014, Sergey Sapozhnikov was the first among Russian authors to be awarded the honorary title “Artist of the Year” at the Cosmoscow International Contemporary Art Fair.
Photo source: Igor Mukhin
