Provenance
Acquired directly from the artist
Exhibited
Sergey Borisov: People and Time, Manezh Central Exhibition Hall, Moscow, 4-31 August 2007
Catalogue Essay
As one of Russia’s leading contemporary photographers, Sergei Borisov’s body of work is widely acclaimed for its subtle documentation of the social figures who dominated the Underground movement at the tail end of the Soviet Union. Indeed, Borisov's depictions of his subjects as emblems of a shifting socio-cultural paradigm are considered among the earliest and strongest examples of the “new Russians”— individuals whose forward thinking was neatly interwoven with their appreciation for the history of their beloved homeland. In lot 85 Borisov positioned his subject in the context of an upward curving architectural landmark, alluding to the progress—and challenges—associated with the formation of a new social-political landscape. Similarly, in lot 84 Borisov’s subject is re-appropriating the Soviet Union flag, demonstrating the shift in national identity that typified the nation in the late 1980s. Together, the two images reflect the artist’s continuous vision for his native land, at once filled with pride of the past but bracing of the many shifts belying an exciting future.

Sergei Borisov

Ascent

2002
Gelatin silver print.
23 5/8 x 15 3/4 in. (60 x 40 cm)
Signed, dated and numbered 20/30 in pencil on the verso.

Estimate
$3,000 - 5,000

Sold for $4,000

Contact Specialist
Vanessa Kramer Hallett
Worldwide Head, Photographs
vhallett@phillips.com
+1 212 940 1245

New York 30 September & 1 October 2013