AES+F

(Russian, established 1987)

AES+F is a group of Russian contemporary artists made up of Tatiana Arzamasova, Lev Evzovich, Evgeny Svyatsky, and Vladimir Fridkes. Their photographs, animations, and videos collage together disparate imagery in order to convey social criticism and underlying narratives. “We never make direct conclusions and we never comment on things [that] are obvious,” Evzovich said of their work. Formed in 1987, the Moscow-based group was originally called AES when it did not yet include Vladimir Fridkes, the “+F” was added in 1995, when Fridkes became a member. Their surreal work Last Riot (2005–2007)—a computer generated animation presents a dystopian scene inhabited by dragons roosting on oil platforms and young people battling with swords—eventually grew into a trilogy that includes Feast of Trimalchio (2009) and Allegoria Sacra (2011). All four artists currently live and work in Moscow, Russia. Today, AES+F’s works are held in the collections of the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, the Sammlung Goetz in Munich, and the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, among others.