Valeriy Valran

about the artist

Valery Valran was born into a middle class family in the Ukhtinusky Region of USSR (West of the Ural mountains) in 1949. In spite of an early passion for the arts, Valran realized early on that he would have to complete his academic studies in another subject, as the USSR held a bleak view of art as a profession, and the average salary of artists reflected this discrimination profoundly. Hence, Valran was enrolled in the Leningrad Pedagogical Institute, the Mathematical Department in 1966. Nonetheless, Valran later moved on to pursue psychology instead. This field of academia had a particular appeal to Valran's character; as he consequently went on to pursue postgraduate studies on the subject between 1975 and 1979. Eventually, this lead Valran to receive a Ph. D in psychology from the Academy of Pedagogical sciences.

Nonetheless, throughout his academic pursuits, Valran was also continuously involved with artistic quests, which is shown through his involvement with the artistic community of Russia from 1972 onwards. Valran's early work was done in an abstract expressivity style and was heavily influenced by Pollock and Mikhnov-Voitenko. From 1975, Valran was deeply engrossed in still lifes and compositions of objects. 1979 saw Valran cultivating interest towards landscapes, mainly city views. Between the years of 1981 and 1985, Valran also became absorbed by portraiture. These various subjects of composition were all pursued with the same integrity and with the same level of artistic skill and the variety of subject matters allowed Valran to develop his own artistic manner, which he dubbed as being "archetypal still life". Archetypal still life evolved Valran's oeuvre in 1982 to develop into a kind of a "magical abstractionism".

Valran has been taking part in exhibitions since 1976 onwards, and overall has contributed towards more than 100 group exhibitions in Russia, Germany, Switzerland, USA and England.

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biography

Solo Exhibitions:

2011 ART re.FLEX Gallery. St.Petersburg, Russia.
2011 Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St.Petersburg, Russia.
2011 Exhibitionary complex Dialogue, Velikiy Novgorod, Russia
2010 ART re.FLEX Gallery. St. Petersburg, Russia
2009 Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia
2006 Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia
2005 Gallery 'Arka', St. Petersburg, Russia
2005 The State Yaroslavl Art Museum, Russia
2005 The State Arkhangelsk Art Museum, Russia
2005 Gallery «Sam Brook». V. Vysotsky State Cultural Centre-Museum. Moscow, Russia
2004 The State Museum of the St. Petersburg Sculpture, Russia.
2002 Gallery «Sam Brook». V. Vysotsky State Cultural Centre-Museum. Moscow, Russia.
2002 The IV Festival of Art and Cinema, Nice, France.
2001 The State Yaroslavl Art Museum, Russia.
2000 The State Yaroslavl Art Museum, Russia.
1999 Gallery 'White light', Tver, Russia
1999 The State Museum of the St. Petersburg History, Russia
1998 Gallery 'Art-Collegium', St. Petersburg, Russia
1997 St. Petersburg Bank of Reconstruction and Development. St. Petersburg, Russia
1997 National Gallery of the Komi Republic. Syktyvkar, Russia.
1997 Ernst Deutsche Theatre. Hamburg, Germany.
1996 Gallery 'С.П.А.С.', St. Petersburg, Russia.
1995 Cultural Centre «East-West». Munich. Germany.
1995 Gallery Palette, St. Petersburg, Russia.
1995 Lanttag Reiland-Pfalz, Mainz. Germany.
1995 Gallery Schtagenhaus, Munich. Germany.
1995 Kronburg Castle. Memingen, Germany.
1994 Gallery 'Hinterhouse', Wiesbaden, Germany.
1994 Museum 'Remerhall', Bade Kroiznach, Germany.
1994 Cultural Centre «Alta Fabrik». Raperswill. Switzerland.
1994 Gallery «Borei». St. Petersburg, Russia.
1993 Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fontanny Dom. St. Petersburg, Russia.
1992 Gallery «Borei». St. Petersburg, Russia
1989 Raab Gallery, West Berlin, Germany.
1987 Club 'Vodokanal'. Leningrad, Soviet Union.
1982 Library of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Leningrad, Soviet Union.
1979 Leningrad House of Artists' Union, Leningrad, Soviet Union.

Selected group exhibitions:

2009 Sea Level, The International Festival of Independent Art. The Central Expo Hall "Manezh", St. Petersburg, Russia.
2009 The Russian Beauty, The State Centre of Modern Art. Moscow, Russia.
2008 Maylartissimo, The A. S. Popov Central Museum of Communication. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2008 Power of Water, The State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg.
2006 The time of changes, The State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg.
2005 Maylartissimo-2005, The A.S.Popov Central Museum of Communication. St. Petersburg.
2005 The collage in Russia. The 20th Century, The State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg.
2003 The vanguard on the Neva-river. The 2nd half of the 20th Century, The State Tretyakov Gallery. Moscow.
2001 The Russian abstraction. The 20th Century, The State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg.

Personal Projects in Pushkinskaya Art Centre in St. Petersburg:

2011 The expressive geometry 2.
2010 The expressive geometry 1.
2010 The nude. Immersion in the space of flesh.
2009 Russian Gothic.
2006 Petersburg Trees.
2004 A simple still life.
2001 Kilkart.

Selected publications:

2011 Valran: Expressive geometry I, Catalogue of exposition. ART re.FLEX Gallery. St. Petersburg.
2011 Valran: Expressive geometry I, Catalogue of exposition. Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2009 Erarta. Museum of Modern Art. 100 works from the collection. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2009 «Sea level». The International Festival of Independent Art. Catalogue of exposition, Central Expo Hall «Manezh». St. Petersburg, Russia.
2009 «Russian Beauty». Catalogue of exposition. The State Centre of Modern Art. Moscow, Russia.
2009 Valran. 'Russian Gothic', Catalogue of exposition. Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2008 Miracle of George and serpent, Catalogue of exposition. State Museum of History St. Petersburg. Rumiantsev's Mansion.
2008 Power of Water, State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2007 Valran - L. Gurevich. Artists of the Leningrad Underground. Biography Dictionary. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2006 Valran. Petersburg. Trees, Catalogue of exposition. Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2006 Time of changes. Art 1960-1985 in the Soviet Union, State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2005 Collage in Russia. The 20th Century, State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2004 Valran. A simple still life, Catalogue of exposition. State Museum of Urban Sculpture, St. Petersburg, Russia.
2003 Vanguard on the Neva-river, Album for expo. State Tretyakov Gallery. Moscow, Russia.
2003 Valran,- Samizdat of Leningrad. 1950s – 1980s. Literature encyclopaedia, М., New Literature Review, Russia.
2001 Valran. 'Kilkart', Booklet for expo. Yaroslavl Art Museum, Russia.
2001 Abstraction in Russia. The 20th Century, State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg, Russia.
1999 Valran. 'Selected works'. Booklet for exposition. State Museum of History St. Petersburg, Russia.
1995 The St. Petersburg Project, Album for expo. Lantag Reyland-Pfalz. Mainz, Germany.

For Curator's projects (papers on art):

2011 The pilgrimage at Literature Sites, Liudmila Tabolina. at the Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2010 Petersburg by Boris Smelov. Photography, Catalogue of exposition at the State Museum of the Urban Sculpture. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2010 Sergey Zhirkevich. The selected works. Photography, Catalogue of exposition in the Gallery Borei, St. Petersburg, Russia.
2010 Boris Kudriakov. A wine-glass of lead, Catalogue of exposition in the Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2009 Valentin Samarin. Metaphysics of Light and Shadow, Catalogue of exposition in the Russian Museum. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2009 Boris Smelov. Selected works, Catalogue of exposition in the Gallery 'Borei', St. Petersburg, Russia.
2009 Boris Kudriakov. КLAVA+КЕSHA = YALTA, Catalogue of exposition in the Gallery "Borei", St.Petersburg, Russia.
2007 Boris Smelov. Photography, Catalogue. pARTner project Gallery, Moscow, Russia.
2007 The Leningrad Photounderground, Catalogue of exposition. State Russian Museum. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2007 The Poem with no Hero. Photoversion, Catalogue of exposition in the Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fountain House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2004 The Emperor Paul I. The modern image of the past, Catalogue of exposition in the Russian Museum. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2004 Valery Valran. Formation of Art market in Leningrad, St. Petersburg. – 'The new Art Petersburg', Reference-analytical collection. N.I. Novikov Editing House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2003 Valery Valran, The Leningrad Underground. Painting, photography, rock-music. N.I. Novikov Editing House. St. Petersburg, Russia.
2002 'Vladlen Gavrilchik. Painting'. Booklet for the Expo. Gallery Borei. St. Petersburg, Russia.

Selected collections:

State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia;
State Museum of the St. Petersburg History, Russia;
Non-Conformist Art Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia;
National Gallery of the Komi Republic, Syktyvkar, Russia
Museum 'Remerhall', Germany;
Museum of Modern Russian Art, Jersey City, USA;
Tver Regional Picture Gallery, Russia,
State Yaroslavl Art Museum, Russia;
State Arkhangelsk Art Museum, Russia;
Anna Akhmatova Museum in the Fontanny Dom St. Petersburg, Russia ;
The A.S. Popov Central Museum of Communications, St. Petersburg, Russia;
Museum of Modern Art Erarta St. Petersburg, Russia.