AES+F (Russian, established )

AES+F is a group of Russian contemporary artists made up of Tatiana Arzamasova (b.1955), Lev Evzovich (b.1958), Evgeny Svyatsky (b.1957), and Vladimir Fridkes (b. 1956). The Moscow-based group was originally called AES (based on the artists'' initials) at the time of its formation in 1987, when it did not include Fridkes. The "+F" was added in 1995, when Fridkes became a member. Arzamasova and Evzovich graduated from Moscow Architectural Institute in 1978 and 1982, respectively. Svyatsky is a 1980 graduate of the Moscow University of Printing Arts, while records show that Fridkes has no formal education.

The group''s main focus is photography, but they have also been known to produce video and computer-based art, as well as drawings, paintings, and sculptures. Their works are featured in the collections of well-known Russian and European museums, including The State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, the Multimedia Art Center in Moscow, Les Abattoirs in Paris, and the Goetz Collection in Munich. AES+F''s video, Last Riot, was shown at the 2007 Venice Biennale and features violent scenes of an imagined future depicting dragons roosting on oil platforms, starkly contrasting landscapes, and young people living a brutal and lawless existence. This work would prove to be one of their better-known pieces, and would eventually grow into a trilogy, along with the later Feast of Trimalchio (2009) and Allegoria Sacra (2011).

The works of AES+F are represented by the Volker Diehl Gallery in Berlin, the Anna Schwartz Gallery in Melbourne, the Has Knoll Gallery in Vienna, the Triumph Gallery in Moscow, the Ruzicska Gallery in Salzburg, the Charlotte Moser Gallery in Geneva, the Arario Gallery in Beijing, the SEM-Art Gallery in Monaco, the Loop Gallery in South Korea, the Juan Ruiz Gallery in Venezuela, and the Art Statements Gallery in Hong Kong. All four artists live and work in Moscow, as they have done throughout their careers.

Timeline

Tatiana Arzamasova
Born 1955.
Graduated from Moscow Architectural Institute (MArkhI) in 1978. Lives and works in Moscow, Russia.
Lev Evzovich
Born 1958.
Graduated from Moscow Architectural Institute (MArkhI) in 1982. Lives and works in Moscow, Russia.
Evgeny Svyatsky
Born 1957.
Graduated from Moscow University of Printing Arts in 1980. Lives and works in Moscow, Russia.
Vladimir Fridkes
Born 1956.
Trained as a photographer. Lives and works in Moscow, Russia.
The artists began working as AES Group in 1987. Vladimir Fridkes joined in 1995, when the group became known as AES+F.

Exhibitions

2013
55th Venice Biennale, Italy
2010
Fast Forward 2: The Power of Motion, Media Art Sammlung Goetz, ZKM Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, Germany
2009
Russia 21, Pinchuk Art Center, Kiev, Ukraine
Unconditional Love, Arsenale Novissimo, 53rd Venice Biennale collateral programme, Venice, Italy
Angels and Demons, a commission for Europa XXL, Lille, France
2008
The Last Riot 2, Museo dArte Contemporanea Roma, Rome, Italy (solo)
The Last Riot 2, Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Moscow, Russia (solo)
The Last Riot 2, Station Museum of Contemporary Art, Houston, TX (solo)
The Last Riot 2, Passage de Retz, Paris, France (solo)
Russian Dreams, Bass Museum of Art, Miami, FL
Aurum, Centre PasquArt, Biel, Switzerland
Mockba!, Galerie Volker Diehl, Berlin, Germany
Kandinsky Prize, Palazzo Italia, Berlin, Germany
Ormeau Baths Gallery, Belfast, Ireland (solo)
Max Gandolph Bibliothek, Salzburg, Austria (solo)
2007
The Last Riot, Claire Oliver Gallery, New York, NY (solo)
The Last Riot, Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy (solo)
The Last Riot 2, The Sotheby’s Institute of Art, London, UK (solo)
AES - AES+F: Retrospective, State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia
AES+F, Art Statement Gallery, Hong Kong, China
AES+F, Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome, Rome, Italy
AES+F, Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Moscow, Russia
2006
AES+F, personal presentation on EFAH conference, City Hall, Helsinki, Finland
Last Riot 2, Salvador Diaz Gallery, Madrid, Spain
Last Rebellion (Last Riot 2), Moscow, Russia
Photobiennale 2006, Moscow House of Photography, Central Exhibition Hall, Moscow, Russia
King of the Forest, Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane, Australia
2005
The Islamic Project: Bedouin Oasis, Claire Oliver, New York, NY
AES+F, Juan Ruiz Galeria, Maracaibo, Venezuela
AES+F. Action Half Life, Galerie RUZICSKA, Salzburg, Austria
2004
AES+F group. Action Half Life, Galerie Koll Wien, Vienna, Austria
2003
The King of the Forest, part 3, COFA/claire oliver fine art, New York, NY
Action Half Life. Episode 2, Guelman Gallery, Moscow, Russia
Kunstmuseum, Hanover, Germany
Paris Photo 2003, Place Carrousel du Louvre, Quai des Tuileries, Paris, France
AES+F Group. OASIS - Espanya Islàmica, Sala Montcada, La Caixa Foundation, Barcelona, Spain

Public Collections

Neue Galerie, Graz, Austria
M. Guelman Foundation for Contemporary Art, Moscow, Russia
Musee de Leglise, Lausanne, Switzerland
Stadt Galerie Esslingenam, Neckar, Germany
Center for Contemporary Photography, Paris, France
Moscow House of Photography, Moscow, Russia
Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden
National Collection of Contemporary Art, Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia
The State Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia
Moscow Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow, Russia
Collection of the Comunidad de Madris, Spain
Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris, France
Les Abattoirs, Toulouse, France