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VLADIMIR SELEZNEV
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Bio / Statement
Vladimir Seleznev (b. 1984 in Moscow, Russia) is a photographer and visual artist. The most important part of his professional activity is devoted to personal long-term projects that are centered around issues of personal and social identity, social mythology, collective unconscious, as well as problems of suppressing personal self-awareness within various communities, from family to governmental systems.

In 2020, he published his first photobook "Oseyev" — a pseudo-documentary research of the typical residential environment of a contemporary metropolis that examines the collective myth of the new "city of the future" and visualizes the consumer demand of the "middle class". It also identifies problems of personal isolation and social discomfort within new urban areas.

Since 2018 Vladimir worked on the project "Those who talk in the temple are consigned to sorrow and woe", in which he continues to study the socio-cultural aspects of Russian society. This time, he explores peculiar properties of religious self-awareness as contributing factor to social apathy, ressentiment, as well as the historical legitimization of despotism, authoritarian politics, repression, and external aggression by the state.
The project received support and recognition from several European institutions. It was shortlisted and selected as a finalist in a number of international competitions, and was presented in a solo exhibition in Portugal as part of the Encontros da Imagem festival. An interview with Vladimir about the project was published in the catalogue of the Urbanautica Institute Awards, which annually brings together one of the most extensive selections of photography projects highlighted by the curators of the initiative.

Since 2022, Vladimir has not been living permanently in Russia. After emigrating to Georgia, he has been collaborating with Katya Selezneva on a project exploring urban spaces in Tbilisi (Georgia) through the lens of state control mechanisms and social regulation. The project also addresses the adaptation of emigrants in such environments and their encounters with local residents and members of subcultures. This work was presented in a solo exhibition at Soooon Space in Tbilisi.

Additionally, over the past several years Vladimir has been working with issues of memory and post-memory as political instruments, as well as with the problem of legitimizing historical crimes. A project dedicated to this subject is scheduled for publication in 2027.

Vladimir Seleznev has a higher education in pedagogy. He is the author of teaching programs and co-founder of POLEZRENIYA — educational project dedicated to contemporary photography and visual culture.

He is currently living and working near Paris, France.
Selected awards
2025 - Urbanautica Institute Awards. Winner (Category: Memories and Traditions)

2025 - Gomma Grant. Main prize finalist

2024 - Encontros da Imagem Discovery Awards, Portugal. Finalist

2024 - PhMuseum 2024 Photography Grant. Shortlisted

2021 - Self Publish Riga dummy contest. Shortlist

2019 - International Photography Grant. Documentary nominee

2018 - International Photography Grant. Experimental nominee

2015 - Silver Camera (by Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow). Nomination "Architecture". Prizewinner
Selected exhibitions
2026 - Handle with Care. Spore Initiative. Group. Berlin, Germany

2026 - Handle with Care. Alte Schmelze. Group. Frankfurt am Main, Germany

2026 - (DÉ)GÉNÉRÉ(E)S. Festival OFF Arles. Group. Arles, France

2026 - Keep Your Eyes Peeled XI. AFF Galerie. Group. Berlin, Germany

2026 - Beyond the Upper Margin (in a duo with Katya Selezneva). Solo. Soooon Space, Tbilisi, Georgia

2024 - Encontros da Imagem. International Photography and Visual Art Festival. Solo. Guimarães, Portugal

2021 - Ways of communication. Group. Pennlab Gallery, Moscow, Russia

2021 - Udar. Group. Borovsk Prison Castle, Borovsk, Russia
2021 - Self Publish Riga. Group. ISSP Gallery, Riga, Latvia

2018 - Photo Kyiv Fair. Group. Chicago Central House, Kiev, Ukraine

2017 - Contemporary landscape. Group. Nu Art Gallery, Kiev, Ukraine

2015 - Silver Camera. Group. Central exhibition hall «Manege», Moscow, Russia

2014 - The Third Museum Photobiennale of Contemporary Photography. Group. The Russian Museum, St.-Petersburg, Russia

2014 - Silver Camera. Group. The Tsar Tower of Kazansky railway station, Moscow, Russia

2013 - Silver Camera. Group. The Tsar Tower of Kazansky railway station, Moscow, Russia

2011 - Best Photographer. Group. The Lumiere brothers Center for Photography, Moscow, Russia

2007 - Apple History. Solo. Gallery XXI, Moscow, Russia
Public talks
2024 – "Postmemory and Post-Photography: exploring the Importance of family albums and archives in the AI age". Lecture and public discussion at Mirzoyan Library (in duo with Katya Selezneva). Yerevan International Photo Festival, Armenia

2022 – Presentation of the book "Oseyev". Koreshki festival, Novosibirsk, Russia

2021 – Presentation of the book "Oseyev". Pennlab Gallery, Moscow, Russia

2021 - Presentation of the book "Oseyev". Fotobookmarket on Contemporary Art Center "Winzavod", Moscow, Russia

2018 – Presentation of the project SNR (in collaboration with K. Selezneva ) Photo Kyiv Fair, Chicago Central House, Kiev, Ukraine
Publications and interviews
Blind Magazine (FR)
"Vladimir Seleznev, silence on prie"

Urbanautica Institute Awards 2024 (ENG)
"Those who talk in the temple are consigned to sorrow and woe"

Дискурс (RUS)
«Фотопроект о современной православной вере в России»

Meduza (RUS)
"За десять лет население Москвы увеличилось на полтора миллиона человек. Фотограф Владимир Селезнёв снял окраины разросшейся столицы так, будто это город-призрак"

New East Digital Archive (ENG)
"New Moscow: capturing non-places in the suburbs of the Russian capital"

Photographer (RUS)
Владимир Селезнёв: «В эпоху пост-правды спекулятивная документалистика только набирает обороты»
Teaching
2013/current - multiple courses in photography at Polezreniya School
Education
2001/2006 – Moscow State Pedagogical University, Faculty of Philology, Russia