Sasha Kurmaz

Sasha Kurmaz is a Ukrainian interdisciplinary artist and photographer.

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Early life and education

Kurmaz was born and raised in Kyiv, Ukraine, where he remains based. His artistic trajectory began within Kyiv's graffiti scene during the early 2000s as a member of the collective Psia Krew, which operated at the intersection of classical and post-graffiti styles. He received technical training at the Kyiv Electromechanical College before studying design at the National Academy of Government Managerial Staff of Culture and Arts.

Artistic practice

He uses various media and approaches in his artistic practice, such as photography, collage, video, public intervention, and situations, as well as diverse strategies to engage the audience through collaborative practice. He also actively experiments with found and archival images and develops conceptual artists’ books. The main focus of his work is social and political issues and global challenges that Ukrainian society has faced in recent years.
Kurmaz's works have been widely presented at many international exhibitions and festivals, including exhibitions at the Akademie der Künste Berlin, Künstlerhaus Vienna, Latvian Museum of Photography, Galeria Arsenał, Museum Folkwang, Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art, Museum de Fundatie, NRW-Forum Düsseldorf, Forum Stadtpark, C/O Berlin, Skovde Art Museum, Centre Photographique Marseille, Albertinum – Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, The DOX Centre for Contemporary Art, ZKM Center for Art and Media, Stadtgalerie Künstlerhaus Lauenburg and many others.

Awards

He was awarded the C/O Berlin Talent Award in 2016, the Kazimir Malevich Art Award in 2020, and the Grand Prix Images Vevey in 2023.

Fellowships and residencies

The Gaude Polonia Scholarship, CEC ArtsLink, KulturKontakt, the Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art, HIAP, Westwerk, Kulturhaus Villa Sträuli, Akademie der Künste, Artist Residency Schloss Balmoral.

Selected exhibitions

2011 — Mystetskyi Arsenal / Mala Gallery. "Newspeak." Kyiv, Ukraine.
2011 – Paperworks Gallery. "The Frenzied Urge to Struggle." Moscow, Russia.
2012 — VCRC at NaUKMA. "Ukrainian Body." Kyiv, Ukraine.
2012 — W139. "Catch A Glimpse of Me." Amsterdam, Netherlands.
2013 — CCA Ujazdowski Castle. "Ukrainian News." Warsaw, Poland.
2013 – Survival Kit – International Contemporary Arts Festival. Riga, Latvia.
2013 — FORMAT Photography Festival. Derby, United Kingdom.
2013 — ZKM Museum of Contemporary Art. "Global Activism." Karlsruhe, Germany.
2014 — Künstlerhaus. "I Am Drop In The Ocean." Vienna, Austria.
2014 — Yermilov center. "After The Victory." Kharkiv, Ukraine.
2015 – Biel/Bienne Festival of Photography. Biel/Bienne, Switzerland.
2015 – Kaunas Photography Festival. Kaunas, Lithuania.
2015 — Saatchi Gallery. "UK/raine." London, United Kingdom.
2016 – Kunsthalle Exnergasse WUK. "Into the Dark." Vienna, Austria.
2016 – Gallery Awangarda BWA Wrocław. "Dependence Degree." Wrocław, Poland.
2016 – The Art Museum of Skovde. "Between Revolution and War." Skövde, Sweden.
2017 — NRW Forum. "Perfect Storm." Düsseldorf, Germany.
2017 — Czech Center. "Baby, I Like It Raw." New York City, United States.
2017 – Galeria Arsenał. "Central by East Central." Białystok, Poland.
2017 – Bien Urbain Public Art Festival. Besançon, France.
2017 – BIG Biennale. Geneva, Switzerland.
2018 – OXYD Kunsträume. "Flip A Coin." Winterthur, Switzerland.
2019 — Mystetskyi Arsenal. "Obabich." Kyiv, Ukraine.
2019 — Latvian Museum of Photography. "The Body of Propaganda." Riga, Latvia.
2019 – Semperdepot Gallery. "Between Fire and Fire: Ukrainian Art Now.” Vienna, Austria.
2020 – Galería Santa Fe. "Escaleras Futuras." Bogotá, Colombia.
2021 — PinchukArtCentre. "Remember Yesterday." Kyiv, Ukraine.
2021 – Galeria Arsenał. "Na początku był czyn!" Białystok, Poland.
2021 – Forum Stadtpark. "One Monument in Time." Graz, Austria.
2022 — Akademie der Künste. "What Matters." Berlin, Germany.
2022 — Museum Folkwang. "What is depicted here?" Essen, Germany.
2022 — PHOXXI / Deichtorhallen Hamburg. "The New Abnormal." Hamburg, Germany.
2022 – DOX Centre for Contemporary Art. "The Pain of Others." Prague, Czech Republic.
2022 – Timișoara Architecture Biennial. Timișoara, Romania.
2023 – Centre Photographique Marseille. "Ukraine." Marseille, France.
2023 — Albertinum – Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. "Kaleidoscope of stories. Ukrainian Art 1912–2023." Dresden, Germany.
2023 – The 18th Venice Biennale of Architecture. The Pavilion of Ukraine. Venice, Italy.
2023 – Foto Arsenal Wien. "Crossing Lines. Politics of Images." Vienna, Austria.
2023 — Museum de Fundatie. "Kaleidoscope of stories: Kunst aus der Ukraine.” Zwolle, Netherlands.
2023 – Robert Capa Contemporary Photography Center. "Crossing Lines. Politics of Images." Budapest, Hungary.
2024 — Centro Fotográfico Manuel Álvarez Bravo. "Beyond the Silence." Oaxaca, Mexico.
2024 – Stadtgalerie Künstlerhaus Lauenburg. "Contemplating the Empathy of Others." Lauenburg, Germany.
2025 – Jam Factory Art Center. "Beyond the Silence." Lviv, Ukraine.
2025 — C/O Berlin. "Documentary in Flux." Berlin, Germany.
2025 — Galeria Labirynt. "Voices From Ukraine". Lublin, Poland.

Publications

Red Horse. Sasha Kurmaz. Éditions Images Vevey. Empathy of Others. I lost my library. ISBN 978-6178247546 13 Stories of War. Ukrainian Warchive. Orthodox Chic. Sasha Kurmaz / Alexander Burlaka / Alexey Bykov. Osnovy Publishing LLC. Method. C/O Berlin Talents 38. Sasha Kurmaz / Svea Bräunert. KEHRER Verlag. Concrete and Sex. Sasha Kurmaz. PogoBooks.