Maxim Mamsikov
Sub-creator Established Creator UA
Contemporary Ukrainian figurative art.
About
"I am interested not in the plot itself, but in the mood it radiates. Painting is an attempt to catch the right color of the air, to find that moment when the mundane suddenly becomes poetic. I don't try to invent complex meanings; I just want the viewer to feel the light that I saw."
A key figure of the Ukrainian "New Wave" whose style embodies "new sincerity" in painting. His works transform everyday scenes—cityscapes, beach scenes, cars—into profound poetic metaphors. Masterfully working with color and light, he captures the transience of existence, balancing irony and nostalgia. His art offers a concise and sincere perspective on modern reality.
Maxim Mamsikov is a key figure of the Ukrainian "New Wave," whose career began in the legendary "Paris Commune" circle. His painting serves as a manifesto of "new sincerity," where mundane subjects—urban landscapes, the sea, or passersby—are transformed into profound visual metaphors. The artist masterfully employs a "stop-frame" effect, capturing the fleeting beauty of a moment and filling his canvases with inner light. His residency at Paris's Cité Internationale des Arts helped him develop a unique coloristic language where color becomes the protagonist. Balancing irony and nostalgia, his style makes art both accessible and conceptually multi-layered. As one of the most successful Ukrainian artists at Phillips and Sotheby’s auctions, Mamsikov maintains the status of a master who sees the eternal in the everyday. His work is an intellectual dialogue about memory, space, and the purity of visual perception.
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Credentials
Awards
- 2010 2020 | Regularly listed among the "Top 30 Most Influential Artists of Ukraine" and most successful creators according to Forbes and Focus magazines.
- 2009 Became one of the first Ukrainian artists to achieve significant success at Phillips de Pury (London) auctions, paving the way for international recognition of the Ukrainian art market.
- 2003 First Prize at the "Euro-image" exhibition-contest (Pan-Ukraine project), Kyiv. A landmark project reflecting Ukraine's European integration through art.
- 1999 Grant for an art residency at Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris, France.
- 1995 Laureate of the "Artistic Impressions" exhibition-contest, Ukrainian House, Kyiv. First official professional recognition at the national level.
Solo exhibitions
- 2024 "Art is the Highest Form of Hope" (Bouquet Kyiv Stage), Khlibnia Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2024 "Protagonists. Zhivopisny Zapovidnyk / Paris Commune", Ukrainian House, Kyiv.
- 2024 "Art The Hague", international contemporary art fair, The Hague, Netherlands.
- 2021 "Moving", Triptych ART Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2019 "Legacy", Abramovych Art, Kyiv.
- 2017 "Daylight", Karas Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2013 "Maxim Mamsikov. Painting", Shcherbenko Art Centre, Kyiv.
- 2011 "Plant" (Kombinat), Collection Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2009 "Sea", Karas Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2007 "Color correction", L-Art Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2005 "Kyiv—Paris", Art-Blues Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2003 "Landscape", Karas Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2000 "Maxim Mamsikov", Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris, France.
- 1997 "The Walk", Atelier 36 Gallery, Kyiv.
- 1993 "Maxim Mamsikov", Mystets Gallery, Kyiv.
Group exhibitions
- 2025 "Art of Victory", charity project, Kyiv — Warsaw.
- 2024 "Art is the Highest Form of Hope" (Bouquet Kyiv Stage), Khlibnia Gallery, Kyiv.
- 2024 "Protagonists. Zhivopisny Zapovidnyk / Paris Commune", Ukrainian House, Kyiv.
- 2023 "Forms of Presence", M17 Contemporary Art Center, Kyiv, Ukraine.
- 2022 "The Captured House", European tour: Berlin, Venice, Rome, Amsterdam.
- 2022 "Unfolding Landscapes", Art Centre Silkeborg Bad, Denmark; Royal Museums of Fine Arts, Brussels, Belgium.
- 2019 "Media Addiction. Reincarnation", Ukrainian House, Kyiv.
- 2018 "The First Collection", Abramovych Art, Kyiv.
- 2015 "Museum Collection. Ukrainian Contemporary Art", Mystetskyi Arsenal, Kyiv.
- 2014 "I Am a Drop in the Ocean", Künstlerhaus, Vienna, Austria.
- 2012 "Arsenale 2012", The First Kyiv International Biennale of Contemporary Art, Kyiv.
- 2011 "Independent", Mystetskyi Arsenal, Kyiv.
- 2010 "Top 10 Contemporary Artists of Ukraine", Ludwig Museum, Budapest, Hungary.
- 2004 "Farewell to Arms!", Mystetskyi Arsenal, Kyiv.
- 1999 "Views of Ukraine", Passage de Retz, Paris, France.
- 1994 "Space of the Cultural Revolution", Ukrainian House, Kyiv.
- 1991 "Artistic Impressions", Ukrainian House, Kyiv.
Media coverage
- 2021 Huxley Media "Virtual Museum of Contemporary Ukrainian Art: Maksym Mamsikov's Art of Inevitability", 2021 — https://huxley.media/ru/virtualnyj-muzej-sovremennogo-ukrainskogo-iskusstva-iskusstvo-neizbezhnosti-maksima-mamsikova/
- 2016 Vogue Ukraine "Everything about the artist Maksym Mamsikov", March 21, 2016 — https://vogue.ua/article/culture/art/vse-o-hudozhnike-maksime-mamsikove-15131.html
- 2014 Capital.ua "Maksym Mamsikov on family competition, commercial art, and contractual relations with galleries", September 26, 2014 — https://www.capital.ua/ru/publication/32081-maksim-mamsikov-o-semeynoy-konkurentsii-kommercheskom-iskusstve-i-dogovornykh-otnosheniyakh-s-galereyami
- 2011 ART UKRAINE "Maksym Mamsikov: 'I've painted enough inflatable balloons; I'm interested in painting something else'", September 19, 2011 — https://artukraine.com.ua/a/maksim-mamsikov--naduvnykh-sharov-ya-narisoval-dostatochno-mne-interesno-narisovat-chto-to-eshche/
International fairs
- 2025 "Art of Victory", charity auction and exhibition, Warsaw — London.
- 2024 "Art The Hague", international contemporary art fair, The Hague, Netherlands.
- 2022 "The Captured House", international tour: Berlin, Venice, Rome, Amsterdam.
- 2022 "Unfolding Landscapes", Art Centre Silkeborg Bad, Denmark; Royal Museums of Fine Arts, Brussels, Belgium.
- 2014 "I Am a Drop in the Ocean", Künstlerhaus, Vienna, Austria.
- 2012 Art Basel, international art fair, Basel, Switzerland.
- 2011 Art Miami, international contemporary art fair, Miami, USA.
- 2010 Phillips de Pury & Company Auction, London, UK (record sale of the work "Sea Fight").
- 2009 Sotheby’s Auction, London, UK (Contemporary Art East of Europe sale).
- 2008 Scope Art Show, Basel, Switzerland / Miami, USA.
- 2008 "Fresh Blood", Diehl + Gallery One, Moscow (international project).
- 1999 "Regards sur l'Ukraine" (Views of Ukraine), Passage de Retz, Paris, France.
- 1999 Art Residency and Exhibition, Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris, France.
Personal
- 2011 Institutional Recognition: Participation in the landmark exhibition "20 Years of Presence" (2011) and representation of Ukrainian art in leading European museums, including the Ludwig Museum (Budapest) and Künstlerhaus (Vienna).
- 2009 Auction Record: Setting one of the highest price benchmarks for Ukrainian contemporary painting on the international market with the sale of "Sea Battle" at Phillips de Pury in 2009 for $35,122.
- 2003 National Competition Victory: Winning the prestigious all-Ukrainian "Start" competition for young artists (2003) in the "Visual Arts" category, solidifying his leadership among his generation.
- 1999 International Residency: Receiving a grant for the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris (1999) and a residency at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich, which allowed the artist to elevate his painting to a global contextual level.
- Cult Status: Being a member of the legendary "Paris Commune" squat in the early 1990s, which became the foundation for all modern Ukrainian art and established him as a key figure of the "New Wave."
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