Nataliya Chernakova

Chernakova’s multifaceted practice draws parallels between prehistoric, Renaissance, contemporary, and post-Internet culture and its cult objects. The connections she establishes are grounded in research into art forms as tools for crowd manipulation, the evolution of perception, and the boundary between kitsch and fine art. Initially begun as an exploration of the female nude in her “Pelican” series of paintings, drawings, and sculptures, this theme evolved into the “Blow-Up” series, in which she addresses stereotypes of attractiveness and their link to seduction in popular culture and Christian art. In her work, Chernakova combines classical techniques with an uncanny visual language, merging traditional art forms with contemporary culture.

Nataliya Chernakova was born in the Soviet Union in 1990. She earned a BSc in Industrial Design from the Ural State Academy of Architecture and Arts in Ekaterinburg, Russia, in 2011, and an MSc in Product Design in Business from Loughborough University, UK, in 2012. She later completed an MA in Painting at the Royal College of Art in London, UK, in 2017.

She has participated in numerous group exhibitions internationally, including the official collateral event “Machines of Loving Grace” at the Venice Biennale (2015) and “Lost Senses” at Common Projects, supported by Arts Council England. In 2019, Chernakova was among twenty artists shortlisted for the Premio Cairo fellowship, an achievement celebrated with an exhibition at the Royal Palace of Milan. Her work has received critical acclaim, including reviews by Tommaso Trini and Mike Watson.