Nika Neelova lives and works in London, UK.
Often utilising reclaimed architectural materials, Nika Neelova is interested in the way materials and architecture influence our sense of time and place. Bypassing straightforward means of fabrication, her work is concerned with finding modes of retrieving and revealing information that is already there and the multiplicities of histories concealed within in as a way of finding and imagining evidence of human pasts through inanimate things. The sculptures are often created by employing tactics of 'reverse archaeology' - considering an alternative reading of human history by examining found objects and architectural debris, and transforming them beyond functionality. In these works the human body and touch remains as a vestigial memory. Drawing arks between different time periods and disciplines the sculptures form part of larger cycles, temporarily arrested in their current form. Neelova attribute high importance to material transformations often inspired by the latent potency immanent in the materials. The sculptures are often focused on the conversions involved in translating existing objects into other mediums, decoding and recoding their purposes, enacting the processes that were used to shape them, altering their internal structures and liberating objects from their meaning.
Education:
2011 MA Fine Art Sculpture, Slade School of Art, London
2008 BA Fine Art Interdisciplinary, Royal Art Academy, The Hague
Selected solo exhibitions:
2025 Museum der Moderne Salzburg (forthcoming) 2025 Sir John Soane Museum London (forthcoming) 2024 beghost, Nika Project Space Dubai, UAE 2023 thaw, Noire gallery Turin 2023 Very Like a Whale, Santozeum, Santorini, Greece 2022 ECC Project, Chieri, Turin ECContemporary 2021 SILT, Brighton CCA 2021 Celine Art Project curated by Hedi Slimane, Celine London 2021 [ъ] [ы] [ь] curated by Garage MCA at Voznecensky Tsentr, Moscow 2021 One of Many Fragments. Edward Allington &Nika Neelova, New Art Centre 2019 EVER, The Tetley, Leeds 2019 GLYPHS, Noire Gallery, Turin 2018 DAMA curated by Domenico de Chirico & Giorgio Galotti, Turin 2018 DRIFTS (there is always ground, even at night), MLF Brussels 2017 Lemniscates, Independent, Brussels 2016 FAULTS / FOLDS / FALLS, Vigo Gallery, London 2014 I lean to you numb as a fossil. Tell me I’m here, Ron Mandos Gallery, Amsterdam 2013 Fragments Shored against the Ruins, Vigo Gallery, London 2013 Northern Taurids, Royal British Society of Sculptors, London 2011 Monuments, Charlie Smith Gallery, London
Selected group exhibitions:
2024 “I miti dell’arte contemporanea” Fondazione Puglisi a Catania 2024 Frieze Sculpture Park with Noire Gallery, curated by Fatos Ustek, London 2024 Block & Grids, Stephane Simmons gallery, Knokke 2024 Story yet to be told, Ortigia Contemporanea, Sicily 2024 Ordine e disordine, Noire gallery, Turin 2023 From Birth to Earth, Parafin, London 2023 Ephemeral Structures, Nika Project Space, Dubai 2023 (Everything is) Not What it Seems, Piran Museum of Visual Art, Slovenia 2023 Fragments of time unending, Nika Project Space, Dubai 2022 (Everything is) Not What it Seems, NITJA Museum, Oslo 2022 Flock, Bolee and Workman, Bruton, UK
2021 Not Painting, Copperfield London 2021 Frieze London with Allied Editions and Brighton CCA
2021 A-N 40th Anniversary x Slow Install, A-N Newsletter
2021 ‘Her Dark Materials', curated by Philly Adams for The Eye of the Huntress
2021 Contemporary Sculpture Fulmer 2021
2020 FRIEZE London, with Osnova Gallery
2020 Special Projects, curated by Maria Abramenko, Cardi gallery
2020 Back to the origins, curated by Domenico de Chirico
2020 Silence is so accurate, Geukens de Vil, Antwerp
2019 Hortus Conclusus, Fondazione 107, Turin
2018 She sees the shadows, curated by Olivia Leahy and Adam Carr. DRAF & Mostyn, UK 2018 Prevent This Tragedy, Post-Institute London, UK
2017 XVII. The Age of Nymphs, curated by Daria Khan, Mimosa House, London
2017 Theatre of the Absurd, curated by Yasmin Atassi, Green Art Gallery, Dubai
2017 Seventeen with Yelena Popova, Code, Copenhagen
2017 The opposite of Now, Guest Projects, London
2017 Contemporary Sculpture Fulmer, UK
2017 Blue Seventeen, Osnova, WinZavod Centre of Contemporary Art, Moscow
2017 Seventeen, Centrala, Birmingham
2017 Leidenschaft, Museum Biedermann, Germany
2017 New Material, Art in Perpetuity Trust, Arts Council England, London
2016 Habitus, curated by Matthew Burrows, The Observer Building, UK
2016 A city without a sound, curated by Karina El-Helou, Averard Hotel, London
2015 Archeology and Architecture, Fondazione 107, Turin
2015 The Sky is a mountain, Kunsthal 3,14, Norway
2014 Brand New Second Hand, Vigo Gallery, London
2014 Lichtspiele, Museum Biedermann, Germany
2014 Warp and Woof, The Hole Gallery, New York
2014 The Crisis Commission curated by Laurence Sillars, Christie’s London
2013 Great Men Die Twice, Mario Sequeira Gallery, Portugal
2013 Gaiety is most outstanding feature of the Soviet Union, Saatchi Gallery London
2013 White Nights, PERMM Museum of Contemporary Art, Russia
2013 The Future Can Wait, Victoria House, London
2012 Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award Exhibition, London
2012 The Crisis Commission, Somerset House and Christie’s London
2012 Saatchi New Sensations and The Future Can Wait, Victoria House, London
2011 Reworking Memories, Group Show, Federica Schiavo Gallery, Rome
2011 Polemically Small, Torrance Art Museum, United States
2011 3 Worlds in 1, London International, Lithuania
2010 Saatchi Gallery and Channel 4’s New Sensations, Saatchi Gallery, London
Awards & residencies:
2024 Sir John Soane Museum Artist-in-residence, London 2021 A_N Artist Bursaries
2020 Arts Council England Grant
2019 Arts Council England National Lottery Grant
2019 Fondation CAB residency Brussels, Bergium
2017 Syllabus residency Wysing Art Centre, UK in association with Studio Voltaire, Spike Island Bristol, New Contemporaries, S1 Space, Eastside Projects
2015 Kunsthal 3,14 Residency, Norway
2013 Sculpture Shock Award & Royal British Society of Sculptors
2013 Villa Lena Art Foundation Residency, Tuscany, Italy
2012 Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award, London
2011 Olga Roubinskaya Foundation Award, Moscow
2011 The Land Securities Prize Award, London
2010 The Saatchi Gallery and Channel 4 New Sensations Prize, London
2010 Kenneth Armitage Foundation, The Fifth Annual Young Sculptors Prize
Publications & press:
2023 Sculpture Magazine, International Sculpture Center, Nov-Dec issue Continuous Return by Robert Preece 2023 Art Focus. An artist who gives a voice to things by Christianna Bonin 2023 THE WICK Spotlight Sculptor Nika Neelova
2022 Wallpaper magazine, Jan issue. Celine Art Project, text by Dal Choda
2021 Parnass magazine, Dec issue, Sculpture in Focus
2021 Vogue Russia, Celine Art Project, text by Ekaterina Lantsmann
2021 Elle Decoration Russia, ‘The Revolution of the Object’
2021 ‘The Refusal of Functionality’ text by Ivan Streltsov for Syg. ma
2021 ‘Seepages’ text written by Sophie J Williamson for Silt Brighton CCA
2021 [] как в слове “Зверь” text by Yulia Tikhomirova for Spectate
2021 Studio International, SILT text by Veronica J Simpson
2021 Art Fictions Podcast ‘Human Vessels’, in conversation with Jillian Knipe
2021 New Art Centre Podcast with Thalia Wood-Allington and Thomas Marks
2021 ‘The Great Oolite’ text by Lizzie Llyod
2021 Brighton CCA Podcast in conversation with Sophie Williamson
2021 Talking with Electricity, Chapel Art Centre
2021 ‘Unearthed:Eco-Visionaries’ by Kate Neave for Openlab.fm
2020 ‘Intuitive Geometries. Women making sculpture.' Yellowfields, Text by Jennifer Dudley 2020 Yorkshire Sculpture International by Eamonn Maxwell
2019 Review of Ever at The Tetley, AfterView 2019 Nika Neelova at The Tetley, Art Viewer 2019 Review of EVER at The Tetley, Corridor8 2019 Glyphs, review, Art Tribune Torino
2019 Elle Decoration, ‘Part Home, part galley’ by Charlotte Brooke
2019 Glyphs by Luca Maffeo, FormeUniche formeuniche.org
2018 She sees the shadows, Mostyn gallery and DRAF
2018 An artwork for the end of the world by Chelsea Pettitt, Sculptor Vox 2017 Art Monthly Review of Seventeen Centrala Birmingham review 2017 this is tomorrow review ‘Seventeen’ Centrala Birmingham review 2017 Art Research Map, review of Independent Brussels
2017 White Hot Magazine, review of Independent Brussels 2017 2017 AroundArt.org review of Blue Seventeen by Y. Ginsbourg. 2016 Sailing on Solaris, by Nick Hackworth
2016 Sculpture Shock Publication, RBS London
2015 Art and Religion in the 21st Century, by Aaron Rosen, Thames & Hudson publishing 2014 100 London Artists, by Edward Lucie-Smith & Zavier Ellis
2014 Highlike Book, Electronic Language International Festival and SESI publishing
2014 The Language of Sculpture, Crowood Press
2014 Aesthetica Catalogue, Artists Reviewed
2013 Gaiety is the most outstanding feature of the Soviet Union, Saatchi Gallery Catalogue 2013 Nika Neelova Short Feature Film, Crane TV
2013 Russian Art is Hot says the Saatchi, Huffington Post
2013 Interview Art and Surrender, Near East Magazine
2012 ‘Salvaged Memories’ Interview, Phaidon
2012 1883 Magazine Interview and exhibition review
2011 The Catlin Guide, Selected Artists
2011 ‘The moment before collapse’, Interview for K Magazine
2010 ‘Future art stars cause a New Sensation’, Exhibition review, Evening Standard
2010 3 minute feature film, Channel 4 & Saatchi New Sensations
Collections:
Celine Art Collection, New Art Centre collection, DRAF David Roberts Art Foundation Collection, London; Saatchi Gallery Collection, London; Modern Forms, UK; Noire Foundation, Turin; Fondazione 107, Turin; PERMM Museum of Modern Art Collection, Russia; Museum Biedermann Collection, Germany; Beth de Woody Collection, New York; Jason Martin Collection, Portugal; Levett Collection; Land Securities, London; Beckers Collection, Sweden; Private collections in UK, Germany, France, Russia, The Netherlands, Italy, Belgium