It was estimated that more than 300,000 Russians left their country after the war in Ukraine began on 24th February. Among them were artists who could not stay in Russia and chose London – the European art capital – as their destination.
But while London is now becoming a new home for many political refugees, a large number of people involved in the art industry had already settled down here for a while. The opponents of the authoritarian regime moved from Russia years ago, and are still in exile today. For some of them, London quickly became a hospitable place to live, while for others it took a long time to adapt to their new life.
Yet, this city is more than just a simple dot on the map for them; it is their new and now only home. Born and raised in Russia, they reject the label of “Russians in London” and insist on being called “Londoners”.
“London gives you outstanding opportunities to ‘upgrade’ yourself as an artist, but you need to be in constant development. Otherwise, you are doomed to fail,” says contemporary artist Anna Kolosova.
Kolosova was born in Latvia but raised in Russia. Her family moved to Moscow when she was six, so she finished school and spent her youth there. But, she explains she was always “not like all other children” in Moscow because of her “artsy nature”.
“In Russia, I was always a freak. A girl with fashionable clothes that liked to stand out of the crowd and displayed love towards everything odd, not typical. I was an outsider in the eyes of my peers.”
Kolosova’s ties to London began when her paintings at a Moscow exhibition were noticed by curators from Central Saint Martin’s. They offered her a chance to study there and she moved to London in 2017 to study Fine Arts.
In the UK, and especially in London, the government provides financial support for “young artists”. But London’s art industry has its pitfalls: the more talented artists are on the market, the higher is competition among them. In other words, financial aid is not a guarantee for future employment.
Today, the starting price for Kolosova’s paintings is around £1,500. She is also presenting her new series of NFT works and launching a fashion collection in collaboration with local designers. But before becoming a successful artist, Kolosova worked as a waitress, gallery assistant and receptionist to pay her rent.
“Last year I lived for a few months in a squat on one of the roofs in London. But in those 25 square metres, I felt more freedom than in whole huge Moscow”. At that time, Kolosova spent all her money on the materials for her work and the exhibitions where her paintings were displayed.
She has no regrets as made back her expenses when she sold her paintings. More importantly, she now feels free to do whatever she wants as London is a shelter for anyone who tries to find both inspiration and discover themselves. “The more bizarre you are, the better it is,” she says.
But while Kolosova revels in her feeling of total freedom, other Russian artists have found that not all constraints are political.
“When there are no rules, it is easier to break them”
Katia Kesic
“The absence of political censorship has nothing in common with your internal harmony and perception that you found the right niche for yourself,” explains Russian interior architect Katia Kesic.
She has lived in London since 2012 after enrolling at Chelsea College of Arts. By a stroke of luck, her personal tutor offered her a job in the architecture company he owned, so she managed to settle down in London.
“At first I took an offer without any doubts, but gradually commercial orders started to repress the inspiration and internal freedom,” Kesic says. “In London, the lack of political pressure is balanced out by the other problem, which is much more difficult to abolish – the commercialisation of the art market.”
Kesic says that while nobody will tell you that your painting brings discredit to the government in London, your work could be overlooked just because your art is not in tune with the current tendencies and trends.
Russian contemporary artist Nikolai Ishchuk agrees with Kesic. “Running to the UK from limits and bounds in Russia, you don’t notice how you fall into another trap. You become a hostage of the audience’s tastes as in London, the vast majority of artworks are put up for sale,” he says.
“In Russia, the authorities decide your fate; especially now, after the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine war that ruined all the glimmers of democratic art once and for all,” he adds. In London, it is the critics and art collectors who mostly determine your career.
Ishchuk’s response was to stick to his guns “and simply to hope that, sooner or later, the buyer for your works will be found.” It has worked for him. Graduating from Cambridge as an economist in 2004, he worked in the banking sector while painting abstract works. A few years ago, his work started to become more popular.
“Right now, I can say that London is my home as it’s exactly the place where I feel comfortable,” he says.