Born in Belarus, Wakultschik does not think of himself as a painter.
Even though color is a central aspect of his art, his focus is always the object. “As I am an object artist, I find inspiration in everything around me,
even if it is a flat object. In my mind, I develop it into something three-dimensional”.
While traveling to California, he thus developed the idea of painting with wooden sticks.
Seriality lies at the core of Wakultschik’s work. He has been working on Optical Portraits since 2015.
This year, he presents his new series, Carpets, which is sparked by his interest in tapestries.
Open to all kinds of inspiration, he references materiality and symbolic meaning of wall hangings and floor coverings, while at the same time relieving his Carpets from the burden of use.
Work titles such as Arash, Azar and Anahita conjure memories of One Thousand and One Nights and imbue the work series with the magic of Scheherazade.
Tales of Aladdin, of flying carpets, of palaces and mysteries of the orient shimmer through the pieces. In Qatar, a craving for pomegranates and the longing for the Rivers of Paradise are woven into the pattern.
But Wakultschik adds irony to the objects of his observation, while at the same time thwarting their substantiality by way of his technique — the classic Oriental rugs are made of heavy textile and charged with symbolic meaning. Object-like quality and structure of wooden sticks paraphrase their knotting, while simultaneously ruling out the use as floor covering. Wakultschik thus alludes to the quintessential purpose of the objects that served as models — in the East, the product category of rugs includes textiles which cover walls or tables. While a knot count of over a million makes for an exquisite example, Wakultschik needs 16,000 wooden sticks for one of his mid-sized works. Only then does he achieve the desired resolution and the intensity of emotion, illusion, and vibration that he aims for — and his utmost joy of puzzling the viewers and playing with their perception. Op-Art artists such as Bridget Riley admired Seurat. Wakultschik, in turn, stands in the tradition of Op-Art. Through his empirical studies, he arrives at its pointillistic roots. But with his moving, shimmering dots in a manner of Seurat, he takes the pointillistic technique of painting to a new level and quite literally into space. Painting with light and shadow, and with illusionistic strategies that are as subtle as they are clever, he plays the loveliest tricks on us. Wakultschik puts the viewers’ sense of sight to the test and undermines parameters of perception that hitherto were irrefutable. Diving into optic
phenomenons that Goethe was already fascinated with, he pulls his viewers into a world of flickerin surfaces; a place where optical deception is embraced. From the depth of the shadowy spaces to the outermost tips of his pointy structures, Wakultschik directs and redirects our sight a hundred thousand. Right
on point, indeed.
1973 born in Minsk, Belarus.
Lives and works in Düsseldorf, Germany.
Art fairs last years:
2023 Con Unique Contemporary: Baf Bergamo - Brescia Montichiari - The Others Torino - Arte Nuvola Roma
2022 Con Unique Contemporary: Baf Bergamo - Arte Parma - The others Torino
2021
St Art fair Strasbourg - Unique Contemporary
The Others fair Torino - Unique Contemporary
Art Madrid fair- Unique Contemporary
2019
Biennale Venezia
Positions Munich, Munich, Germany
Texas Contemporary, Housto Texas USA
BEIRUT ART FAIR, Beirut, Lebanon
VOLTA Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Art Central Hong Kong
Art KARLSRUHE Germany
L.A Art Show Modern + Contemporary Los Angeles, California, USA
Education
1992 – 2000
Kunstakademie Düsseldorf (Arts Academy of Düsseldorf),
Düsseldorf, Germany: Studies of Painting and Drawing with
Professor Jannis Kounellis and Professor Beate Schiff
1984 – 1991
Belarusian Lyceum of Fine Arts, Art Department, Minsk,
Belarus
Teaching Experience since 2017
Lecturer at Alanus Hochschule für Kunst und Gesellschaft
(Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences), Alfter,
Germany
Awards and Accolades
2009
SWITCH ON Kunstpreis Licht 2009
(Art Award Light 2009) Recognition Award, Graefelfing,
Germany
2006
Kunstpreis Wesseling: Special Prize for Originality,
Wesseling, Germany
2005
PSD Bank Award, Rhein-Ruhr, Düsseldorf, Germany
2001
Sparkasse Bayreuth Art Award, Bayreuth, Germany
Stadtwerke Herne AG Young Art Award, Herne, Germany
Emprise Art Award 2001, NRW-Forum Kultur und Wirtschaft,
Düsseldorf, Germany
2000
Caspar von Zumbusch Award, Herzebrock-Clarhorst,
Germany Kö-Galerie Award, Düsseldorf, Germany
1987
Union Competition Diploma: Third Prize, Moscow, Russia
Work Abroad Experiences
2017
3 months work stay in the United States
2015
3 months work stay in the United States
2013
6 weeks work stay in the United States
Benefizauktionen / Charity Auctions
2019
HeARTwork 2019, Christie‘s Charity Auction, Heartbreaker
Förderkreis der Aidshilfe Düsseldorf e.V. (Heartbreaker AIDS
Relief Society Düsseldorf), courtesy von fraunberg gallery,
K21, Düsseldorf, Germany
2018
Winter Wonderland by Bal de Noël under the patronage by
of HSH Princess Charlène of Monaco, courtesy art golden
din, Hotel Hermitage, Monaco
HeARTwork 2018, Christie‘s Charity Auction, Heartbreaker
Förderkreis der Aidshilfe Düsseldorf e.V. (Heartbreaker AIDS
Relief Society Düsseldorf), courtesy von fraunberg gallery,
K21, Düsseldorf, Germany
Sammlungen / Collections
Adelta Finanz AG Düsseldorf, Germany
AXA Cologne, Germany
Bach, Langheid & Dalmayr Cologne, Germany
Booz-Allen & Hamilton Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Denk GmbH Berlin, Germany
Emprise Consulting GmbH Düsseldorf, Germany
Ernst & Young Deutsche Allgemeine Treuhand AG
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Fast Trade AG Cologne, Germany
Hewlett Packard Deutschland Böblingen, Germany
NEW AG Mönchengladbach, Germany
ProFonds GmbH Munich, Germany
PSD Bank Rhein-Ruhr Düsseldorf, Germany
PwC Deutsche Revision AG Düsseldorf, Germany
Qiagen AG Hilden, Germany
Sparkasse Herne Herne, Germany
Städtische Galerie Arsenal Białystok, Poland