About the artist

Yuriy Vakulenko (1957, Nizhny Tagil) is a Ukrainian artist and cultural figure.
In 1977, Yuriy graduated from the A. Azimzade Azerbaijan Art School. From 1980 to 1986 he studied at the Kyiv State Art Institute (the National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture), his specialization was art restoring, under the direction of V. Budnikov and O. Kiselyov. In 1988 he established the creative group "39.2°". Since 1986 he has been actively exhibiting. Member of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine. Solo exhibitions were held in Poland, Hungary, Italy, France, Luxembourg and Spain.
From 1993 to 2004, he headed the Center for Restoration and Examination of the National Kyiv-Pechersk Historical Cultural Reserve. Since 2004 he has been the General Director of the National Museum "Kyiv Art Gallery". Associate Professor of Expertise of the National Academy of Management of Culture and Arts, a full member of the International Committee of Museums ICOM UNESCO and the International Council for the Preservation of Monuments and Sites ICOMOS. Knight of the Order of Carl Faberge. Order "For Merits" of the III degree. Secretary of the Supervisory Board of the National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture, Member of the Supervisory Board of the National Academy of Management of Culture and Arts and the Institute of Contemporary Art of the National Academy of Arts of Ukraine. Honored Worker of Culture of Ukraine. He lives and works in Kyiv.
The artist's work is full of kindness and harmony. The works are wise in their own sense, sometimes naive and easy. Air, water, earth, fire - on the canvases do not just coexist in harmony, they form a single whole. The space is filled with good animals and birds, wise spectators and creators. They admire and dream, soar and vibrate, appearing suddenly and dissolving in the same way.
The artist's works are in the museum collections of the Kiev-Pechersk Reserve, the National Museum "Kyiv Art Gallery", the National Museum of Taras Shevchenko, Odessa Art Museum, as well as in large private collections in Ukraine, Israel, USA.