Vik (Vyacheslav Zabelin)

Painter, graphic artist. Born in the family of a Russian officer called Yury Zabelin near the city of Choibalsan in eastern Mongolia (1953). Studied at the Vladimir Serov School of Art in Leningrad (1971–74). Member of the Fellowship of Experimental Art (1980s). Contributed to private apartment exhibitions (from the mid-1970s) and the official exhibitions of Alypius at the University of Tartu (1978), Artists of Leningrad at the Observatory in the Crimea (1980), First Exhibition of the Fellowship of Experimental Art on Bronnitskaya in St Petersburg (1981), Exhibitions of the Fellowship of Experimental Art at the Palace of Youth in St Petersburg (1982–87), Modern Art of Leningrad at the Manège Central Exhibition Hall in St Petersburg (1988), Leningrad Artists on Malaya Gruzinskaya in Moscow (1990), Hammer Center in Moscow (1990), Gillian Jason Gallery in London (1991), Art Myth in Moscow (1991), series of exhibitions marking the tenth anniversary of Solidarnosc in Poland, Germany and France (1992), Holy Fire at the Beloselsky-Belozersky Palace in St Petersburg (1992), Resurrection at the Museum of Ethnography in St Petersburg (1993), Third Petersburg Biennale (1994), Art Reality ’95 at the Manège Central Exhibition Hall in St Petersburg (1995), Gallery D-137 in St Petersburg (1996–2000), All Petersburg 1999 at the Manège Central Exhibition Hall in St Petersburg (2000) and a one-man show at the Museum of the History of St Petersburg (1994).

Vik’s artistic style is influenced by the traditions of Russian icon-painting, popular folk prints (lubok) and the avant-garde of the 1910s and 1920s. A large portion of the artist’s works are based on religious subjects. Patriarchal structures and social absurdities, common “types” and urban lunatics, fairground fêtes and angels flying above the city of St Petersburg coexist in his works. Combining Russian folklore with the new urban mythology, Vik’s oeuvre incorporates an inherent goodness that is fast disappearing from modern reality.