Nika Neelova

Nika Neelova (b. 1987) is a Russian artist based in London. Her recent exhibitions include ‘EVER’, The Tetley, Leeds (2019), ‘She sees the shadows’ Group exhibition DRAF & Mostyn, UK (2018) and EVERYWHEN Brighton CCA (Upcoming 2021). She studied MA Fine Art Sculpture at Slade School of Art, London.

Nika Neelova makes evocative sculptures and installations that resonate with associations of history, personal memory, and the rise and fall of civilizations. Inspired by multidisciplinary research into the artefacts that form the surrounding world and using existing and fictional narratives, the pieces are often based on salvaged materials from lived-in environments, reconciling recognisable day-to-day objects and pronouncing their alternative qualities.




2019 - EVER, The Tetley, Leeds © The Tetley, Leeds U.K.

lemniscates, 2017 Installation view Independent Brussels

Nika Neelova, untitled (folded studio), 2016 perimeter of the artist studio traced in steel mounted on hinges, flexible configuration




Nika Neelova, Partings, 2012 Somerset House & Christie’s, London. Somerset house door cast in hollow concrete, burnt timber, rope 400cm x 300cm x 200cm

Lemniscates IX

Reassembled bannister handrails

310cm x 130cm x 70cm

The Lemniscate series are sculptures made from wooden bannisters each from two flights of stairs, reclaimed from houses awaiting demolition, repurposed and fitted together so that each forms an infinite loop. A lemniscate, in mathematics, is a curved line or plane with a distinct 8-shape, consisting of two loops that meet at a central point.

Bannisters are moulded specifically to fit in the palm of the hand. They were crafted over a hundred years ago by human hands, and spent the next century interacting with other hands guiding them through space. Their wooden surfaces, altered by prolonged exposure to touch, also collect microscopic bits of skin. That way, each sculpture carries the DNA of hundreds of people becoming a collective portrait of the absent human bodies who have come through the now demolished houses. This relationship between skin and wood mimics a direct connection between a person and a building, and suggest a continuity that runs through the human body, architecture and space.

NIKA NEELOVALemniscate IX , 2020 Reassembled bannister handrails 310 x 130 x 70 cmGBP 20,000

Lateral Cuts

ardex, jesmonite, hand-cast ceramics, glass, metal

318mm x 230mm x 310mm (each)

Lateral cuts refer to a site of phantom architecture and architectural mutations. It is a network of sculptures based on computer generated images of a lateral cross-section exposing the internal layers of a building by making a straight cut through its walls and foundations. Transecting the architectural body in order to  uncover its enclosed structural layers, the sculptures are formed following methods of reverse archaeology. Exposing the remnants of the building replicated in ardex, jesmonite, hand-cast ceramics, glass and metals the sculptures recreate the future ruins of the facades, external and internal walls, insulation, underfloor heating, cabling, pipework, skirting boards, flooring and screed. By revealing  the 'hidden geology' of buildings, the pieces trace a line of continuity between the human body, architecture and geology of earth.

NIKA NEELOVALateral cuts I. Models of internal architectural cross-sections, 2020ardex, jesmonite, hand-cast ceramics, glass, metal318 x 230 x 310 mmGBP 4,000

NIKA NEELOVALateral cuts II. Models of internal architectural cross-sections, 2020ardex, jesmonite, hand-cast ceramics, glass, metal318 x 230 x 310 mmGBP 4,000

NIKA NEELOVALateral cuts series III. Models of internal architectural cross-sections, 2020ardex, jesmonite, hand-cast ceramics, glass, metal318 x 230 x 310 mmGBP 4,000

Blue 17

Cast jesmonite, aluminium

39cm x 29cm x 5cm (each)

«Blue 17" – is a part of the geological series of works by Nika Neelova. They are made of jesmonite - synthetic gypsum. The artist creates artificial stones with it and merges them together, combining like a collage. Stones and any other geological formations are always something voluminous, but here they seem flat, so as if they were made in a slice. The sensation of their two-dimensionality is illusory, because only one of their surfaces is flat, the others are hidden. “Blue 17” is an attempt to make something between two-dimensional and three-dimensional, to create something that belongs to indefinite space and time. Fragments of blue color complement the collage of stone-like structures and resemble water flows, bringing the idea of the flow of time and history into the artist's work. This futuristic and at the same time archaeological landscape offers to look at the world as “temporary solidification in the continuing course”.

NIKA NEELOVABlue 17 I, 2017Cast jesmonite, aluminium39 x 29 x 5 cmGBP 2,700

NIKA NEELOVABlue 17 II, 2017Cast jesmonite, aluminium39 x 29 x 5 cmGBP 2,700

NIKA NEELOVABlue 17 III, 2017Cast jesmonite, aluminium39 x 29 x 5 cmGBP 2,700

Untitled (ikea stools)

Cast plaster

130 x 77 x 5 cm

«Untitled (ikea stools)» is a plaster relief, molded from the form taken from the IKEA stool leg. With the change of material, it loses its original function, and can no longer withstand human weight, but it still looks like a support, resembling a fragile bone. The relief also continues the attempt of the artist to transfer objects familiar to man in the natural landscape and geological formations. It is painted with chalk and metallic powders, giving different shades depending on the metal: pinkish - copper, greenish - brass. But the main motive of the work is denial and rejection of human ordinariness. Nika Neelova finds an abstract form to a recognizable object, casts each leg by hand, denying technological progress and going back to manual work.

NIKA NEELOVAUntitled (ikea stools), 2017Cast plaster130 x 77 x 5 cmGBP 5,000

NIKA NEELOVA

Born in Moscow, Russia; lives and works in London and Moscow

Education: 2011 MA Fine Art Sculpture, Slade School of Art, London 2008 BA Fine Art Interdisciplinary, Royal Art Academy, The Hague

Selected solo exhibitions: 2021 EVERYWHEN Brighton CCA (forthcoming) 2019 EVER The Tetley, Leeds 2019 GLYPHS, Noire Gallery, Turin 2018 DAMA (solo presentation) curated by Domenico de Chirico & Giorgio Galotti, Turin 2018 DRIFTS (there is always ground, even at night), MLF Brussels 2017 lemniscates, Independent, Brussels 2016 FAULTS / FOLDS / FALLS, Vigo Gallery, London 2014 I lean to you numb as a fossil. Tell me I’m here, Ron Mandos Gallery, Amsterdam 2013 Fragments Shored against the Ruins, Vigo Gallery, London 2013 Northern Taurids, Royal British Society of Sculptors, London 2011 Fractions, Jarmuschek + Partner, Berlin 2011 Monuments, Charlie Smith Gallery, London

Selected group exhibitions: 2020 Group Show, New Art Centre - Roche Court, Uk (forthcoming) 2020 Special Projects, curated by Maria Abramenko, Cardi gallery 2020 Fondamenta by Artissima with Noire Gallery 2020 Back to the origins, curated by Domenico de Chirico for Art Curator Grid 2020 Silence is so accurate, Geukens de Vil, Antwerp 2019 Hortus Conclusus, Fondazione 107, Turin 2018 She sees the shadows, curated by Olivia Leahy and Adam Carr. DRAF & Mostyn, UK 2018 Prevent This Tragedy, Post-Institute London, UK 2017 XVII. The Age of Nymphs, curated by Daria Khan, Mimosa House, London   2017 Theatre of the Absurd, curated by Yasmin Atassi, Green Art Gallery, Dubai 2017 Seventeen with Yelena Popova, Code, Copenhagen 2017 Artist Rooms, curated by Encounter Contemporary, Copeland Gallery, Bussey Building London 2017 The opposite of Now, Guest Projects, London 2017 Contemporary Sculpture Fulmer, UK 2017 Micro Salon (1957-2017) Iris Clert Legacy, l’inlassable Paris 2017 Blue Seventeen, Osnova, WinZavod Centre of Contemporary Art, Moscow 2017 Seventeen, Centrala, Birmingham       2017 Leidenschaft, Museum Biedermann, Germany 2017 New Material, Art in Perpetuity Trust, Arts Council England, London 2016 Habitus, curated by Matthew Burrows, The Observer Building, UK 2016 Playroom, Union Club Soho, London 2016 A city without a sound, curated by Karina El-Helou, Averard Hotel, London 2015 ARCHEOLOGIA E ARCHITETTURA, Fondazione 107, Turin 2015 The Sky is a mountain, Kunsthal 3,14, Norway 2015 The Presence of Absence, curated by Paul Carey-Kent, London 2014 Brand New Second Hand, Vigo Gallery, London 2014 Lichtspiele, Museum Biedermann, Germany 2014 Warp and Woof, The Hole Gallery, New York 2014 The Crisis Commission curated by Laurence Sillars, Christie’s London 2013 Great Men Die Twice, Mario Sequeira Gallery, Portugal 2013 Gaiety is most outstanding feature of the Soviet Union, Saatchi Gallery London 2013 White Nights, PERMM Museum of Contemporary Art, Russia 2013 It’s About Time, curated by Paul Carey-Kent, ASC gallery, London 2013 The Future Can Wait, Victoria House, London 2012 Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award Exhibition, London 2012 The Crisis Commission, Somerset House and Christie’s London 2012 Saatchi New Sensations and The Future Can Wait, Victoria House, London 2012 Recasting the Gods, Sumarria Lunn Gallery, London 2011 Reworking Memories, Group Show, Federica Schiavo Gallery, Rome 2011 The Future Can Wait, Victoria House, London, UK 2011 Polemically Small, Torrance Art Museum, United States 2011 3 Worlds in 1, London International, Lithuania 2010 Saatchi Gallery and Channel 4’s New Sensations, Saatchi Gallery, London 2010 The Future Can Wait, Shoreditch Town Hall, London 2010 Young Gods, Charlie Smith Gallery, London, UK

Awards & residencies: 2020 Arts Council Grant 2019 Arts Council England National Lottery Grant 2019 Fondation CAB residency Brussels, Bergium 2017 Syllabus residency Wysing Art Centre, UK in association with Studio Voltaire, Spike Island Bristol, New Contemporaries, S1 Space, Eastside Projects 2015 Kunsthal 3,14 Residency, Norway 2013 Sculpture Shock Award & Royal British Society of Sculptors 2013 Villa Lena Art Foundation Residency, Tuscany, Italy 2012 Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award, London 2011 Olga Roubinskaya Foundation Award, Moscow 2011 The Land Securities Prize Award, London 2010 The Saatchi Gallery and Channel 4 New Sensations Prize, London 2010 Kenneth Armitage Foundation, The Fifth Annual Young Sculptors Prize

Publications & press: 2020 Intuitive Geometries. Women making sculpture. Yellowfields III. Text by Jennifer Dudley 2020 Yorkshire Sculpture International by Eamonn Maxwell 2019 Review of Ever at The Tetley, AfterView 2019 Nika Neelova at The Tetley, Art Viewer 2019 Review of EVER at The Tetley, Corridor8 2019 Glyphs, review, Art Tribune Torino 2019 Glyphs by Luca Maffeo, FormeUniche formeuniche.org 2018 She sees the shadows, Mostyn gallery and DRAF 2018 An artwork for the end of the world by Chelsea Pettitt, Sculptor Vox 2017 Art Monthly Review of Seventeen Centrala Birmingham review 2017 this is tomorrow review ‘Seventeen’ Centrala Birmingham review 2017 Art Research Map, review of Independent Brussels 2017 2017 White Hot Magazine, review of Independent Brussels 2017 2017 AroundArt.org review of Blue Seventeen by Y. Ginsbourg 2017 Scandale Project magazine and publication Art is. 2016 Sailing on Solaris, by Nick Hackworth 2016 Sculpture Shock Publication, RBS London 2016 Interview, FMS magazine London 2015 Art and Religion in the 21st Century, by Aaron Rosen, Thames & Hudson publishing 2015 The Presence of Absence, Paul Carey-Kent & Berloni Gallery, London 2014 100 London Artists, by Edward Lucie-Smith & Zavier Ellis 2014 Highlike Book, Electronic Language International Festival and SESI publishing 2014 The Language of Sculpture, Crowood Press 2014 Aesthetica Catalogue, Artists Reviewed 2014 Lichtspiele, Museum Biedermann Exhibition catalogue 2013 Gaiety is the most outstanding feature of the Soviet Union, Saatchi Gallery Catalogue 2013 Nika Neelova Short Feature Film, Crane TV 2013 Russian Art is Hot says the Saatchi, Huffington Post 2013 Interview Art and Surrender, Near East Magazine 2013 Interview and exhibition review, Formidable Magazine 2013 PERMM Museum of Contemporary Art Exhibition Catalogue 2012 ‘Salvaged Memories’ Interview, Phaidon 2012 1883 Magazine Interview and exhibition review 2012 Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award 2012 The Future Can Wait Exhibition Catalogue 2012 Christie’s Auction Catalogue The Crisis Commission 2012 The Crisis Commission Catalogue 2011 The Catlin Guide, Selected Artists 2011 ‘The moment before collapse’, Interview for K Magazine 2011 Nika Neelova: Memories of Now by Paul Carey-Kent, Exhibition review 2011 ‘Monuments’. Exhibition review and interview, New Style Magazine 2010 ‘Future art stars cause a New Sensation’, Exhibition review, Evening Standard 2010 3 minute feature film, Channel 4 & Saatchi New Sensations 2009 Slade Album of Prints, Selected prints, collection book

Collections: DRAF David Roberts Art Foundation Collection, London, Saatchi Gallery Collection, London PERMM Museum of Modern Art Collection, Russia, Museum Biedermann Collection, Germany-Beth de Woody Collection, New York, Jason Martin Collection, Portugal, Levett Collection, London Land Securities Commission, London, Beckers Collection, Sweden, Fondazione 107, Torino, Campiani Collezione, Brescia

Osnova galleryMoscow, Kholodil’nyy Pereulok, 3 bld 5

+7 926 887 39 87+7 926 393 00 91hello@osnovagallery.comwww.osnovagallery.com

http://www.osnovagallery.comhttp://www.osnovagallery.com

Nika Neelova2019 - EVER, The Tetley, Leeds © The Tetley, Leeds U.K.lemniscates, 2017 Installation view Independent BrusselsCatalog - 2020-10-01-1Nika Neelova, untitled (folded studio),Somerset house door cast in hollowLemniscatesLemniscate, 2020Lateral CutsLateral cuts I. Models of internal architectural cross-sections, 2020Blue 17 NIKA NEELOVA Blue 17 I, 2017Untitled (ikea stools) Untitled (ikea stools) 2CVContactsContacts2