DENIS GLADKOV
Cluster Exhibitor | Photography & Print Fair 2022
DEN GLADKOV: Visual artist working in photography, creative direction, text & moving image.
Born in New York, USA.
In 2015, I started my career at Harper’s Bazaar Russia as a stylist.
In 2017, I graduated from the Moscow State University with the BA Degree of a lifestyle media journalist. My final project, ‘21 Magazine’, was aimed to showcase the emerging Russian youth.
After completing my degree in journalism, I moved to London where I continued to pursue my career in photography, working on a freelance basis & studying Photography at the London College of Communication.
In 2019, my work 'Max. Movement Studies' was exhibited as a part of a group show at the Truman Brewery in London.
I also got a degree at MA Fashion Photography course at the University of the Arts London (London College of Fashion) in 2020.
My MA project was shortlisted as TOP-15 UK Photography projects by VICE Magazine.
Clients include British Fashion Council, Dior, Leica, London Fashion Week, Vogue Italia, VICE, Eifman Ballet,
the Bolshoi Theatre amongst many others.
Currently working as a freelance photographer between London, Moscow & Saint Petersburg.
My visual practice is focused on a male form, exploring the male character through portraiture, movement, and menswear with a decadent, nostalgic feel of dark romanticism and retro chic.
‘Dancer’s Diary: Performers in Confinement’— a series of still images made in collaboration with ballet dancers & other performing artists between London, Saint Petersburg, and Moscow during the pandemic in 2020 - 2021. The project is inspired by recent advents and awareness of the potential for creative industries to respond to the current situation. The project is aimed to document and showcase performing artists disconnected from their natural stage environment: dancers, actors & musicians,etc.
Working on the project, I focused on the refined beauty of a human body looking for self-expression in movement. I collaborated with established artists
as well as with the new wave of young emerging performers. The shift from a photo portrait to movement and dance serves as a visual metaphor,
symbolising the transition of a performer from their everyday persona to an epic stage image, the grotesque image of a performer.
Another key aspect of the project is the idea of memory. Memory is valuable for both reformers and photographers. Photographers make memories by documenting, and performers capture moments through physical memories. The qualities that photography and performing arts represent capture the essence of performance, allowing documentation of a unique moment, which holds a fraction in time.
The pandemic has given a hard time to performing artists. A lot of talented performers lost their jobs, lacking support from the government and the industry, to which they have dedicated their whole lives. Shooting the project where I documented performing artists during the quarantine in 2020-2021, I wanted to give exposure to performers who lost their everyday ability to practice and perform.
