Oleh Sokolov. UNIVERSE ON PAPER

Oleg Sokolov. The universe on paper

From June 13 to July 18, Goldens auction house presents a retrospective exhibition “Oleg Sokolov. The Universe on Paper”, which broadly presents the artist's work. The exposition includes more than 50 graphic works of the 1950s-1980s and offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the artistic world formed at the intersection of Soviet reality, personal poetics and inner freedom.

Oleh Sokolov is one of the key figures of Ukrainian unofficial art, whose works are characterized by bold metaphor, experiments with form and color, and a hidden critique of social clichés. He is an almost mythological figure in the history of Ukrainian art. His work is a combination of deep intellectuality, philosophical sensitivity, and visual freedom. Working under the constraints of Soviet cultural policy, he was one of the artists who consciously avoided opportunism and chose the path of internal autonomy.

Sokolov was a part of the unofficial artistic environment, but he never belonged to radical avant-garde groups. His language is complex, metaphorical, and emotionally intense. In the 1950s and 1960s, he worked with abstractions and monotypes, and in the 1970s and 1980s, he created paintings that balanced between figuration and symbolism.

One of the characteristic features of Sokolov's creative style (especially in the 1970s and 1980s) was the active use of collage. At a time when artistic material was scarce, collage became for him not only a technical tool but also a conceptual gesture. He combined fragments of printed images, newspapers, and book illustrations with his own painting layer, creating a new reality on paper. It was in such works that the artist most clearly showed himself as a thinker of the image, who not only depicts but also assembles a new form of vision.

Despite the fact that his name remained in the shadow of official art for a long time, Sokolov had a significant influence on a generation of younger artists, primarily due to his consistency, loyalty to his own vision, and uncompromising approach. His work echoes the practices of European modernism, particularly German Expressionism, but is deeply rooted in the Ukrainian cultural context.

His art is not just a reaction to the times, but a foresight of new forms of sensibility that have already emerged in the post-Soviet period. Today, when Ukrainian culture is actively rethinking its own lost and marginalized narratives, Sokolov's figure is returning with renewed vigor and relevance.

The exhibition is open to the public from June 13 to July 18, Monday through Friday from 12:00 to 19:00.

Opening hours:
June 13 - July 18, 2025
12:00 - 19:00
Sunday is a day off
Admission is free

Address: Kyiv, 4 Leonid Pervomaisky str.
GOLDENS auction house
+38 050 462 95 32
[email protected]
www.gs-art.com
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