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Russian Artist Mixes Renaissance Beauty With Moscow’s Gritty Reality

Naumov invites the viewer to contemplate complex problems in modern society. Vykh_ress / Instagram

Moscow-based artist Yevgeniy Naumuv aims to breathe new life into the city’s gloomy urban landscape by turning them into Renaissance-inspired artworks. 

A resident of the Vykhino neighborhood located in Moscow’s outskirts, Naumov defines his art style as “Vykhino Renaissance,” saying it reveals the romantic side of life in gray residential apartment blocks. 

The young artist cleverly integrates iconic paintings into photos taken in Moscow’s residential districts: he puts Mona Lisa to work at a local office building, while Mary, Jesus, and John the Baptist are pictured sitting on the floor of an empty subway car.

While some of Naumov’s works are references to his childhood memories and observations, others invite the viewer to contemplate complex problems in modern society, including poverty, consumerism and police brutality.  

“In my works, I have united horror and beauty, ordinance and uniqueness of things,” Naumov told Metronews. 

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