Elena Subach

Bio

Elena Subach (1980) is a visual artist and photographer. Born in Chervonohrad, based in Lviv, Ukraine.

Before she turned to photography, Elena studied economics and received her Master`s Degree at Volyn State University.

In her artistic practice, Elena is concerned with questioning religion, tradition, the construction of history and the consequences of soviet colonial pasts. Shen works with topics of fragility of human bodies, death and war.


Personal Exhibitions

2023 — “Hidden” at Palazzo Zuccari, Bibliotheca Hertziana, Rome (Italy)

2022 — "Subach / Poliakov 2022" at Szara Gallery, in scope of "Друг друга / Druh Druha" — Ukrainian art in galleries of Warsaw (PL)

2020 — Posters on walls of Hamburg, Galerie 21 im Künstlerhaus Vorwerkstift

2019 — "Heroic Trip" at Szara Gallery (Katowice, Poland)

2019 — "City of Gardens" at EEP Berlin gallery (Germany)

2018 — "Subach / Poliakov" at The Naked Room gallery (Kyiv)

2016 — "Taxidermia" with Periscope group (Lviv)

2014 — "Retablos de Galicia" at Dzyga gallery (Lviv)

Selected Collections

Neues Museum Nürnberg (Germany)

Victoria & Albert Musem (UK)

Modern Religious Art Museum (Brussels, Belgium)

MOCA (Ukraine)

Museum of Kharkiv School of Photography (Ukraine)

Books

2022 — "Hidden (Сховане)" by Besides Press, UK

Selected Group Exhibitions

2024 — "NichteLemberg" at 91 Galerie (Frankfurt am Main, Germany)

2024 — "Essential Goods" at Kyiv`s Pavilion of Culture (Kyiv, Ukraine)

2024 — "Home Again" at Stadthaus Ulm (Ulm, Germany)

2024 — "Testimony". Boris Lurie & Contemporary Art from Eastern Europe at the Neues Museum Nürnberg (Germany)

2024 — “Generations of Resilience” at Hangar Photo Art Center (Brussels, Belgium)

2024 — "Home: Ukrainian Photography" at Edinburg Art Festival, Steel Gallery (Edinburg)

2024 — "Home Beyond the Dawn" at MUSA (Museum of the Arts) University of Guadalajara (Mexico)

2023 — "CROSS-ING WAY-S” at the Modern Religious Art Museum (Brussels, Belgium)

2024 — “Contra Spem Spero. Storie dall Ucraina”
@ Museo Civico di Bari (Italy)
@ Centro Internazionale di Fotografia (Palermo, Italy)

2023 — “How Did I Get To The Bombshelter”
@ Mark Rothko Art Centre (Latvia)
@ Nordic House, Reykjavik (Iceland)
@ Ukraine House in Denmark (Copenhagen)
@ Klaipėdos kultūrų komunikacijų centro (KKKC) (Lithuania)

2023 — “Crossing Lines. Politics of Images” at Foto Arsenal Wien (FOTO WIEN 2023, Austria)

2023 — "Our years, our words, our losses, our search, our us" at Jam Factory Art Center (Lviv, Ukraine)

2023 — "How River Roars" at Krupa Art Foundation (Wrocław, Poland)

2023 — "Are you okay? Ти як?" at Ukrainian House (Kyiv, Ukraine)

2023 — "Home" by Open Eye Gallery (London, UK) and Ukrainian.Photographies

2023 — "The Art of Coping with War" at Museum für Kommunikation, Berlin

2023 — "Ukraine. Work-in-Progress" at KVOST, Berlin

2023 — Riga Photography Biennial "NEXT 2023!""

2023 — "Kharkiv School of Photography — 50 Jahre künstlerische Fotografie aus der Ukraine" at MAXI – Kunst, Nürnberg (DE)

2022–23 — Tell Them About Battles, Meteors and Eggplant Caviar
@ Galerie Le Carré d’Art, Culturel Pôle Sud, Chartres de Bretagne (FR)
@ Simultania, Strasbourg, FR
@ Claude Cahun Center (Nantes, France)

2022 — “Незридані сльози [nezrydani slʹozy] UNGEBORENE TRÄNEN” (= UNBORN TEARS) at Galerie Judith Andreae (Bonn, DE)

2022 — “We are no longer feel the Future” in MUZA — Eretz Israel Museum (Tel Aviv)

2022 — "#UKRAINE IMAGES OF WAR" at Photo Elysee Museum of Photography, Lausanne (Swiss)

2022 — "Death and the Maiden - Der Tod und das Mädchen", Kunstforum Wien (Austria)

2022 — “In Ukraine” at the Gallery at Dobbin Mews (New York)

2022-10 — “Stand with Ukraine” is the scope of Photaumnales festival (#19 Cartographies) in Palace Saint-Etienne (Beauvais, FR) by Diaphane photographic centre

2022–09 — "The Cockerel with Black Wings: A Recovered Heirloom". Group exhibition in the framework of viennacontemporary STATEMENT UKRAINE

2022-05 — "With Ukraine" at Hinterconti gallery, Hamburg (DE)

2022 — "Foreboding Landscape" by Odessa Photo Days, series of exhibitions:
@ La Chambre in Strasburg (FR)
@ Palais de Tokyo in the frame of The Parliament of Photography, Paris
@ Fotofestival Lodz (PL)

2022 — "Unfolding Landscapes", series of exhibitions:
@ Art Centre Silkeborg Bad (Denmark)
@ Art & History Museum Brussels
@ KunstZeugHaus (Rapperswil-Jona, Switzerland)

2022 — ”Slava Ukraini” at Czwartek gallery (Warsaw)

2022 — Secondary Archive by Katarzyna Kozyra Foundation

2021 — "Sensitivity. Contemporary Ukrainian Photography" at Mystetskyi Arsenal (Kyiv)

2021 — Odesa Photo Days festival, main exhibition “Who is next to you?”, Museum of Odesa Modern Art

2020 — "Staged Realities", Outdoor Exhibition by OSTLOOK+EEP Berlin. Part of "POSTWEST \\ guess where" at Transcultural Festival, Volksbühne Berlin

2019 — "Woven Matter" at Unseen (Amsterdam)

2019 — "Between Fire and Fire: Ukrainian Art Now" by Ukrainian Institute at Semperdepot (Wien)

2019 — "Let’s Talk About Modernity" by Fundacja Tadeusza Kantora at Jam Factory (Lviv)

2019 — "Ukrainian Cross-Section" (Український Зріз) at Triennale of Contemporary Art (Lviv)

2019 — "Inny, Obcy, Swoi" at Labirynt gallery (Lublin, Poland)

2019 — Fotofestival Lodz (Poland)

2019 — Fotoart Festival (Bielsko-Biala, Poland)

2019 — II Biennale of Young Ukrainian Art (Kharkiv, Ukraine)

2019 — "How to deal with history" by Ostlook platform at Kolga Tbilisi Photo Festival (Georgia)

2018 — "Somewhere now" (Tam gdzie teraz) in Galerię Labirynt (Lublin, Poland)

2018 — Circulations Festival (Paris)

2017 — The Festival of Young Ukrainian Artists at Mysteskyi Arsenal (Kyiv)

2017 — "Knowns-Unknowns. Lviv photography after the year 2000" Ludwik Zamenhof Centre during Białystok Interphoto Festival (Białystok, Poland)

2017 — Ostrale Biennale (Dresden, Germany)

2017 — EASTStreet 4. Photo festival (Lublin, Poland)

2016 — The Boutographies — Rencontres Photographiques de Montpellier, slideshow (France)

2016 — "Elementary Manipulation" exhibition at Ukrainian Week in Gdansk (Poland)

2016 — "Galicia Cult: Western Ukrainian Art" at Yermilov Centre (Kharkiv)

2016 — Odesa-Batumi Photodays festival (Batumi, Georgia; Odesa, Ukraine)

2016 — Group "Group" exhibition at WBA gallery (Wroclaw, Poland)

2016 — "Strolls With Pleasure And Not Without Moral", Group "Group" exhibition at Ya Gallery (Dnipro, Ukraine)

2016 — Performative curatorial exhibition by Lars Willumeit and Der Greif Magazine during Krakow Photomonth Open Weekend (Krakow, Poland)

2016 — "Saving the Bridge" project by Urban SOYC. Photography, installation (Henychesk, Ukraine)

2015 — Gogol Fest (Kyiv, Ukraine)

2015 — "Dnipro Alternative Art Guide" book by SvitArt gallery, photography for publication (Dnipro, Ukraine)

2015 — Project Cell|One|Fication / Paul Celan Festival at Shteinbarg gallery. Performance, video, installation (Chernivtsi, Ukraine)

2015 — EASTStreet 3. Photo festival, open call finalists exhibition (Lublin, Poland)

2014 — Terra-Futura festival (Kherson, Ukraine)

2015 — "Stops" exibition (Subach, Cherneha, Poliakov) at Chernihiv Municipal Musem (Chernihiv, Ukraine)

2014 — London Analog Festival, open call finalists exhibition (London, UK)

2014 — "She" project (Maria Voynova, Mariana Klochko, Marta Shwets, Taisiya Raynyk) at Bastion Gallery (Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine)

Awards & Mentions

2022 — "Ones to Watch" by The British Journal of Photography

2019 — Participant of Futures Platform

2019 — Gaude Polonia scholarship by National Centre for Culture Poland

2019 — Shortlisted to Gomma Grant

2019 — Fotofestival Lodz Grand Prix finalist

2016 — New East Photo Prize Bigmag Special Prize and grant winner