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Press release

On March 4, the ASKERI GALLERY opened the exhibition "HANDWRITING OF THE PEN", dedicated to an important date – the tenth anniversary of the ASKERI GALLERY. It brought together Russian artists Anna Sladkova, Ksenia Sandesco and Pavel Polyansky. Three artists, three handwriting, three stories inside one gallery. March 4, 2026— May 22, 2026 (the gallery will be closed from 1 to 11 May) MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TO VISIT THE EXHIBITION: https://askeri-gallery.timepad.ru/event/2886222/ Exhibition opening hours: MON—FRI from 11:00 to 19:00; SAT from 12:00 to 19:00 The gallery's ten—year journey is a growth story best illustrated by large-scale achievements. During this time, more than 200 solo exhibitions of artists were realized, each of which became an event opening up new names and new facets of already recognized masters. 10 museum projects organized by ASKERI GALLERY were held in the main institutions of the country: from the Moscow Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Moscow, the Lublino Estate to the historical halls of the Kazan Kremlin and the Nizhny Novgorod Warehouse Museum. The geography of the gallery's presence spanned three continents. ASKERI GALLERY has been represented at more than 30 Russian and international art fairs, including the prestigious foreign venues SCOPE New York, SCOPE Miami, Art021 Shanghai, as well as key Russian fairs Cosmoscow, catalog, Art Russia and many others, where artists' works have consistently been the focus of attention of the professional community and collectors. Expanding the boundaries of the art presence, the gallery has implemented more than 40 projects in the interiors of restaurants and hotels, integrating relevant artistic practices into the daily environment. More than 30 collaborations with leading global and Russian brands have allowed us to take art beyond the exhibition halls, opening it to a new audience. More than 20 large-scale initiatives of the gallery deserve special attention, including the organization of the city festivals of contemporary art in Zaraysk "Between the past and the Future" and "Reboot 2.0". These projects not only drew attention to the ancient city, but also gave an impetus to the development of tourism and infrastructure, turning it into a point of attraction for art connoisseurs from all over the country. Over 10,000 visitors have crossed the threshold of ASKERI GALLERY over the years. Hundreds of thousands of viewers got to know the art at the gallery's outdoor venues and festivals. The founder of the gallery, Polina Askeri, has become one of the most respected experts in the field of contemporary art in Russia over the past decade. She has delivered more than 150 lectures at leading venues in the country. Annual appearances at key economic and cultural forums, from SPIEF to the Eastern Economic Forum, have become a tradition. A special place is occupied by educational activities in the best universities. Polina regularly shares her knowledge with students of MGIMO, HSE, SKOLKOVO, the International School of Design and other institutions, educating a new generation of connoisseurs and professionals of the art market. Today, ASKERI GALLERY unites more than 30 talented artists whose works form a panorama of contemporary Russian and world art. The Russian school is represented by names that have already been written into history: the legendary Yuri Cooper, maestro Zurab Tsereteli, the world-renowned sculptor Dashi Namdakov, the recognized master Gennady Troshkov. Next to them are the brightest representatives of the new generation: Anna Sladkova, Ksenia Sandesco, Pavel Polyansky, Daniil Sobolev, Alexey Golovin, Gleb Baranov, Pavel Kiselyov, Masha Rudenko, Daria Kotlyarova, Daniel Zakkh, Pavel Bagan and Timur Gasumov. The gallery's international program brings together artists from South Korea, France, Spain, Italy, China, the USA, Israel, and the Dominican Republic. World stars such as Kwang Yong Chan, Peter Opheim, Aurel K. Bazedov, Soh Bong Kion, Eunha Lee, Juan Miguel Palacios, Jay Yong Kim, Huang Yulong, Anna de Carbuccia, Marcos Anziani, Eva Armisen, Rafael Abekassis, Seungjin Yang and Romain Froquet engage in dialogue with Russian authors, creating a unique collection in which traditions and artistic languages of different cultures intersect. The online platform Art Online 24, created by Polina Askeri, has become one of the first digital showcases of contemporary art in Russia, opening it to a wide audience. Today, the platform features more than 400 authors and more than 5,000 works in a wide variety of genres. Art Online 24 helps artists show their art and collectors find what they need. Anna Sladkova shows a new image in her painting - carrier pigeons. For her, these birds have become a symbol of connection, tenderness, and a message that will surely reach her. Her painting remains recognizably delicate: soft light, clear contours, almost transparent layers of paint. Pavel Polyansky returns to the series depicting animals in a floral frame. Only now the flowers don't so much frame as embrace. There is something very personal about them, almost intimate, as if the artist wraps his old images in warm clothes, protects them. Animals remain strong and textured, but flowers make them vulnerable and delicate. Ksenia Sandesco does not write people, but characters. They are not copied from nature and are not tied to specific stories. They exist to carry what the artist put in them: light, love, joy. Her painting is open, vibrant and warm. The man and woman in her new works do not merge into one whole, but remain themselves, but there is always an air filled with light between them. Artists are not united by either a theme or a style. Their work is unique and unique. They are united by the fact that everyone in these works said something important for themselves. And when the works are next to each other, there is no dialogue between them, but silence, in which everyone can be clearly heard. And this is the most correct thing to say for the tenth anniversary of ASKERI GALLERY. Art is a personal statement that does not need big words, but unites people and reveals to them something necessary and important.

Artists