Stark Projects

Projects: Past

StarkProjects supports London premiere of 'Nude' project by Eva Caridi

Irina has an honour to mentor 2012 Biennial exhibition of Courtauld Institute of Art. 'East Wing10' opened to public in January 2012 and will run until July 2014. www.eastwingx.co.uk

SUPER BRAND exhibition as part of Frieze art week. 4 - 19 October Hyatt Andaz Hotel, Liverpool street

SUPER BRAND

4 – 19 October

Andaz Hyatt Hotel, London, UK

The exhibition “SuperBrand” retells the story of our relationship as individuals to a society of consumerism, through the extraordinary powers that brands have over our minds. We are surrounded now by products which demand to be bought, even though perhaps we don't understand how and why we let this message succeed.

3 artists show three pillars of a consumer society: sex, identity and religion. Their works represent tongue-in-cheek monuments to our constant desire to consume and rebrand ourselves.

Simon Monk will present a new series of 5 paintings featuring superheroes, that has been commissioned especially for the exhibition. He reflects on the myth of the superhero as a metaphor to explore the relationship between fetish and possessiveness, illusion and desire. The superhero represents an ideal man, blessed with love and attention, capable of protecting and saving all those around him. He dwells on the overtly sexualised image of the superhero, virile, strong, dressed in latex and exposing a perfectly sculpted body like a Greek god. But at the same time, the image of the superhero has become a commonplace of mainstream culture, a banal consumer product in its own right. Can the ideal human being now come pre-packaged in a clear plastic packet?

Matteo Negri's subtle works play with ideas of childhood, day-dreams and self-identity. He uses Lego bricks, the familiar, colourful construction bricks which all children grow up with, to explore ideas of ambition and self-expression. Lego was originally created by a Danish family business after the Second World War, a period optimistic about rebuilding the world, creating a new better place for everyone. A child could join into this optimism, playing with bricks to construct his own dream castles, populated by his own heroic alter-egos. Matteo Negri bends the simple rules of Lego – that all things must be constructed from standard, straight, bricks, and shows that in modern society we also can come up with our own rules, myths and identity. But loops, knots and curves could also be regarded as problems within a society, with no clear right answers. How does one know what to do in a world of many choices, many complications.

Laura Keeble shows two sculptures from the series “Down the Aisle”, a shopping trolley and a shopping basket, both made from reclaimed cathedral stained glass. This series presents an ironic comment on how consumerism has created its own rituals and shared experiences. Where once one went to church on a Sunday, the supermarket aisle might now be the best place to meet one's community. If a consumer seeks validation and a remedy from guilt, products will promise this to them: "buy this you will feel better, be better, live better". Laura Keeble turns a wire basket or a trolley into a sacred space, where carefully selected personal items are placed and claimed as ones own. The final journey up the aisle to the altar, where a donation box validates and blesses this feeling of uplift as a true exchange.

'Brief Permanence'

14 - 17 July 2011 as part of Manchester International Arts

Art Gene; Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria LA14 5TY

Guest speaker at 'Nuts and Bolts' educational programme for artists

24 May 2011, Core gallery, London

'Vasily Sad: Aftermath'

April 2011, Public days: 13, 14, 15 April

Embassy of Ukraine,
60 Holland Park
London WW11 3SJ

'Sexual Object'

15 Feb - 20 March 2011; Salon Vert, London

India Art Summit, stand A16
20 – 23 January
New Delhi, India

Irina Davis: Pin me up – Pin me down
8 Dec 2010 – 15 Jan 2011
Mews42 gallery, London

Group Show of Contemporary Indian Artists for Pratham UK
Sept 2010
Christie’s auction house, London

In June 2009 Irina was appointed Artistic Director of the first Azerbaijani cultural season in the UK

Gala concert. RPO, Shlomo Mintz, conducted by Dmitry Sitkovetsky.
07 March
Southbank, Royal Festival Hall, London

Silent Movies night
04 March
Birkbeck Cinema, London

Tair Salakhov: Unseen.
18 – 25 Feb 2010
Sotheby’s auction house, London

Exhibition of Azerbaijani Craftsmanship
February 2010
St Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square, London

Alexander Mashin. Exhibition of photography
1 – 7 February
St Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square, London

Lectures and performances of Mugham by Jeffrey Werbock
SOAS, London 26 Jan 2010
Oxford 27 Jan 2010
Pushkin House, London 28 Jan 2010

‘Pipedreams’ photography exhibition
17 Dec 2009 – 16 Jan 2010
Host gallery, London

‘Pipedreams’ by Rena Effendi book launch
11 Dec 2009
FrontLine club, London

Kino!Kino!Kino! cinema cycle
Poetry and music evenings
Autum 2009 – winter 2010
Pushkin House, London

Opening concert for BUTA festival of Azerbaijani Arts
25 Nov 2009
Southbank Centre, London

From Light to Dust
4-7 Nov 2009
Theater op de Markt, Belgium

Dialects: Part 2, Exhibition of Contemporary Russian Art
23 April – 13 May
Pushkin House, London

From Light to Dust
28 March – 19 April 2009
The Roundhouse, London

Moscow Contemporary Jazz
2 Jan 2009
Pushkin House, London

Transience
11-21 February 2009
SHUNT, London.

Kapricornian Dreams
Supported by the Embassy of Azerbaijan
12-17 February 2009
Crypt Gallery, London

Solace in Dreams : Art and Fashion
28 Nov 2008 – 3 Jan 2009
Milletre fashion lounge, London

StarkProjects is bringing
“From Light to Dust”
to Theater op de Markt, Belgium !

DIALECTS: PART TWO

Exhibition of Contemporary Russian Art

Pushkin House

Private View Wed 22 April 2009 18:00

Open 16:00 – 18:30 |23 April to 13 May | Mon to Fri

Alina Dolgin (1983, St. Petersburg ) Painter, sculptor and curator, Alina started training in 1986 at the Malaja Academia Isskustv in St. Petersburg . Trained at the Cambridge School of Visual and Performing Arts in 2002. Alina graduated from the Chelsea College of Art and Design in 2007, later undertaking apprenticeships in fiberglass and furniture design.

Philip Firsov (1985, Moscow ) Painter and sculptor, has lived in the UK since 1991. Filip has participated in many projects as artist-in-residence across Europe and has studied in the Central Saint Martins, as well as the Slade School of Art. His most recent solo show was held at the Cupola Gallery, Romania. Works reviews include the Financial Times and Time Out London. Filip is currently studying for a Postgraduate Diploma at the Prince Charles Drawing School in London .

Misha Levin (1986, Moscow ) Started his training in painting in 1991 at the Studio School at the Pushkin Museum in Moscow . Misha graduated from the Slade School of Art and is currently doing a Postgraduate Diploma at the Prince Charles Drawing School . Selected participation in exhibitions include: art fair “Art Moscow” and the Diema’s Dream Charity Foundation at the Victoria and Albert Museum . Misha’s work has been selected for the collection of Prince Charles from the group show of Postgraduate Diploma students. In December 2008 he participated in the first International Salon of Art “Root of Unity”, where he was awarded the Diploma of the Prize Winner.

Asya Lukin (1975, St. Petersburg ) Art teacher, painter and animator, she studied Fine Arts in Jerusalem , Paris and St.Petersburg. Asya graduated in 2007 from the Animation Department at the Royal College of Art, London . Asya has participated in many festivals, including the Edinburgh International Film Festival, the London International Animation Festival and many others across Europe ( Norway , Germany , France and Austria ). She is currently completing her Postgraduate Diploma at the Prince Charles Drawing School .

Veronica Smirnoff (1979, Moscow ) Started painting at the age of 14 after moving to Scotland to complete her education. Veronika studied at the Slade School of Art and graduated from the Royal Academy of Arts in 2007. Her practice involves the ancient technique of Orthodox Icons: egg tempera on small Russian birch boards. Past exhibitions include the Royal Academy Schools Show, London and Galleria Ricardo Crespi, Milan . Her work has been included in the Royal Academy ’s official Alumni Collection.

Viktor Timofeev (1984, Riga) Film-maker and painter, trained at the Brooklyn Tech and the Cuny Hunter College in New York as well as other colleges in London and Berlin. His most recent solo shows include “Zur Sache” in Cologne and “Limited Means”, held at the Hannah Barry Gallery in London .

For the press release, images and all additional information please contact info@starkprojects.co.uk.
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28 March-19 April 2009

FROM LIGHT TO DUST

first visual art exhibition at The Roundhouse, Camden

http://www.roundhouse.org.uk/about/news/circus-exhibition

CASUAL VIEW SATURDAY 28 MARCH 1 PM

PRESS NIGHT – BY INVITATION ONLY – 31 MARCH

‘From Light to Dust’

The Roundhouse, Chalk Farm Road
London NW1 8EH
Information: info (AT) starkprojects.co.uk
Free Entry

To co-incide with NoFit State Circus in the Main Space, the Roundhouse ground floor north annex space by the cafe is hosting an exciting visual arts exhibition curated by Irina Stark on the theme of Circus. An exciting visual arts exhibition on the theme of the Circus. “From Light to Dust” takes as its starting point the story of a travelling circus that came to Shoreditch in 1902, which ended in disaster after the circus-mistress eloped with an aristocratic roué and the Circus itself burned down – but with the circus-mistress’s child being miraculously rescued from the inferno.

This exhibition explores the myriad meanings and contradictions of the Circus – its popular appeal along with its sometimes seedy reputation; its mixture of nostalgic innocence along with macabre defiance of death; the glitter and magnificence of the Big Top along with the hand-to-mouth transience of circus life.

The themes are explored by a series of mixed-media paintings called ‘ The Departed’ by Rosalind Davis. A fusion of paint with collage and embroidery, the paintings depict and reflect upon the transient, ephemeral and macabre aspects of the Circus. These environments can also seem hostile, macabre or nostalgic as they contain many different meanings to many audiences.

‘The Forgotten Circus’ is a film devised and directed by Shelly Love. “The Ringmaster and his circus perform once again to no audience. Forgotten, alone and suspended in time the Ringmaster questions his existence…” The film explores themes rooted in our subconscious such as ‘loneliness, life and death’ through the physicality and extreme expressions of the Circus.

Michaela Nettell‘s video projections on glass will explore ideas of illusion, impermanence and flight, to highlight the fragile nature of the escapism the circus offers.

Exhibition is supported by and MaxusArt.

MOSCOW CONTEMPORARY JAZZ IN LONDON

2 March 2009 – JAZZ CONCERT by MASS AVE – best Moscow jazz musicians!

Pushkin House, www.pushkinhouse.org.uk

To listen to MASS AVE please go to http://www.myspace.com/projectmassave

“Mass Ave Project” is a fusion of styles, personalities, grooves and harmonies consisting of some of the best graduates and students of the world-renowned Berklee College of Music. The music played is all-original instrumental Jamiroquai meets John Scofield meets Herbie Hancock. They first came together in the summer of 2007 for the 7th annual Hermitage Jazz Festival in St. Petersburg, Russia in 2007 and continued performing around the Boston area and bombarding audiences all around with their high-energy funk. In 2008, they were invited by the famous MOJO Concert Agency to perform at the famous North Sea Jazz Festival held annually in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, which in addition included shows around the Netherlands at clubs such as Dizzy and The Duke, as well as performances in St. Petersburg at the Delta Neva Festival.

The members have individually performed with the likes of Marcus Miller, David Fiuczynski, Gongzilla, Me’shell Ndegeocello and David Sanchez to name a few therefore the quality of musicianship is not to be doubted.

http://www.myspace.com/projectmassave

http://www.myspace.com/nikolaymoiseenkomusic

http://www.myspace.com/evgenylebedev

TRANSIENCE

Rosalind Davis, Shelly Love and Michaela Nettell
11th-21st February 2009
Opening night: Thursday 12th February
7 Joiner Street, London Bridge

Transience, a mixed media exhibition of transient communities and cities in flux.

Rosalind Davis shall be showing a series of paintings and installations in the space highlighting community spaces that are a visual echo of human experience.
www.rosalinddavis.co.uk

Michaela Nettell projects slow, shifting video sequences onto glass, imagining ways cities are transformed by their inhabitants’ dreams and desires.
http://www.michaela-nettell.com

Shelly Love shows her film ‘The Forgotten Circus’. A Circus adrift … Forgotten…lost forever in time. Devised and Directed by Shelly Love, performed by Circus Space Performers and Gerard Bell, featuring music by the Irrepressibles.
http://www.shellylove.co.uk

Opening times: Wednesday – Friday 6pm – 11pm. Saturday 8pm -12 am.
Entrance fees for the Shunt Lounge: £5 Wednesday/Thursday; £10 Friday/Saturday

This exhibition explores one of the central features of human existence, namely the fleeting, temporary nature of all our experiences, no matter how impressive or solid they may appear to us now to be. As the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus put it: “everything flows, nothing remains”.

In order to illustrate this point, this exhibition uses the motif of the Circus – a place of wonder and spectacle on the night of the performance, but often an empty field the next morning. The idea of “circus” itself brings with it multiple and contradictory connotations: the glitter and pomp of death-defying stunts, which themselves are forgotten as soon as the audience leaves the Big Top; the eternal painted jollity of the clowns and acrobats in contrast to the actual nomadic and hand-to-mouth existence of the performers.

Societal groups also go through periods of intense public focus, discrimination or neglect. The intense interest can be very transitory, and make important buildings fall out of vogue and appear to belong to the past, like the Royal British Legion Clubs. Through painting and installations Rosalind Davis is examining the buildings London communities use and the human worth that becomes attached to their external and internal spaces.

Michaela Nettell projects slow, shifting video sequences onto glass, imagining ways cities are transformed by their inhabitants’ dreams and desires.

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KAPRICORNIAN VOYAGE

The exhibition is officially supported by the Embassy of The Republic of Azerbaijan

12 – 17 February 2009

Private view Friday 13 February 2009, 6 – 9 pm

at Crypt Gallery, St Pancras Church, Euston Road NW1 2BA (entrance from Duke’s Road)

10 am – 6 pm

Kabira Alieva is a contemporary Azeri artist working in mixed media techniques, combining oriental traditions of ink paint and a fusion of various media. StarkProjects offers the exhibition that sheds light on Kabira’s journey of self exploration, examining the juxtaposition between the real and concrete with the murky depths of the subconscious: the dreamy fairy-tale landscapes that challenge what we perceive as ‘real’. Crafted to evoke strong feelings, the pieces resist interpretation, preferring to remain, tantalisingly, always just out of reach.

For all press enquiries and by appointment visits please contact info (AT) starkprojects.co.uk

The exhibition is supported by the Embassy of The Republic of Azerbaijan

12 – 17 February 2009

Private view: Friday 13 February 2009 6 – 9 pm
at Crypt Gallery, St Pancras Church, NW1 2BA (entrance from Duke’s Road)

This exhibition sheds light on Kabira’s journey of self-exploration, and features many personal works, which have never been shown to the public before. These pieces weave the real and the imagined, with waking dreams, childhood adventures and half-remembered episodes intruding into the present. As well as merging her memories, her works merge different media. Her photography explores the juxtaposition between the real and concrete with the murky depths of the subconscious: the dreamy fairy-tale landscapes, which might be real, or might only be in a parallel dimension. This is Kabira’s take on Alice in Wonderland.

What makes the dichotomy between the tangible and the ethereal more poignant is Kabira’s background as a life scientist. Her 3D pieces show the importance of understanding the language of biological form – amorphorous sculptures, which highlight the inescapable fact of being – that each entity we see is neither part of the past, nor the future. All are part of ‘now’, their journeys incomplete and their destinations unknown.

Kabira’s drawings and paintings take the theme of the descent from reality into parallel worlds further. The abstract nature of some of her compositions merely creates a setting or route-map that allows the viewer to complete her thoughts and story. Do they portray Kabira’s own feelings, her own self-discovery, her conquest over her dreams and fears – or does the freedom and involvement of the viewer personalise and relativise the ideas on the canvas, moulding them with unique but discrete meanings? Kabira’s work certainly seems crafted so as to evoke strong feelings, but they resist interpretation, preferring to remain, tantalisingly, always just out of reach.

For more information about Kabira Alieva please refer to www.kabira.mysite.com

For all press enquiries and RSVP* for the private view please contact info (AT) starkprojects.co.uk
*RSVP for the private view is essential.

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SOLACE IN DREAMS

Art and Fashion

28 November 2008 – 3 January 2009

Private view: Thursday 27 November 2008 6.30 – 8.30 pm
at Milletrè Boutique, 15 Victoria Grove, Kensington W8 5RW

It has long been known that High Fashion and Fine Art are great lovers. Irina Stark presents a rare opportunity to view a fantastic collaboration between an exciting contemporary artist and an exclusive new fashion lounge in Kensington, lately featured in Vogue and Stella.

Rosalind Davis’s multi-layered approach has seen her produce complex works combining paint, embroidery and appliqués creating romantic melancholic landscapes. Solace in Dreams features selected works exploring the tenderness of dreams, the boldness of fantasies and powerful memories that have shaped the Artist’s life. Her works depict complex scenes that are both familiar and strange, welcoming and threatening, sensual and desolate. As a viewer, her imaginative use of vibrant colours and juxtaposed textures draws you into the altered worlds of her images, which are on the border of the permanence of the still life and the transience of a photo.

As part of the exhibition Rosalind has created a limited edition of painted skirts and hand crafted accessories to be sold exclusively at Milletrè. Now you can wear your very own piece of Art like Helen Mirren who penned a very personal thank you for her painted skirt or Natalie Press who has a large collection of accessories by Rosalind Davis. Milletrè also offers 10% discount on their collections for the members of press and during the private view.

Born in London, Rosalind Davis studied at Chelsea School of Art and the Royal College of Art and has exhibited widely in prestigious shows and galleries. Davis’s works are both in public and private collections. Davis’s oeuvre is influenced by the Romantic movement and the melancholia of the Pre-Raphaelites, as well as the materiality and experimental surfaces of Michael Raedecker and Peter Doig.

For more information about Rosalind Davis please refer to www.rosalinddavis.co.uk

For all press enquiries and RSVP* for the private view please contact info (AT) starkprojects.co.uk
*RSVP for the private view is essential.

Exhibition supported by