Ihor Podolchak (, ; born April 9, 1962) is a Ukrainian

filmmaker Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...

and

visual artist The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics (art), ceramics, photography, video, image, filmmaking, design, crafts, and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual a ...

. He is a co-founder of the creative association Masoch Fund, and a participant in the Ukrainian New Wave. Ihor Podolchak was named as one of the 10 most prominent Ukrainian filmmakersЮрій Володарський
''Рейтинг Forbes: 10 найвизначніших кінорежисерів України''

«Forbes Ukraine»
, July 23, 2014. Retrieved July 26, 2014 by Forbes Ukraine in 2014, and is a member of the Ukrainian Film Academy.

Biography

Podolchak was born in

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

(now

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

). He graduated from Lviv Academy of Fine Arts (then Lviv State Institute of Applied and Decorative Arts) with distinction in 1984. From 1984 to 1985 he served in the

Soviet Border Troops The Soviet Border Troops () were the border guard of the Soviet Union, subordinated to the Soviet state security agency: first to the ''Cheka''/State Political Directorate, OGPU, then to NKVD/Ministry for State Security (USSR), MGB and, final ...

on the Soviet-Polish border. From 1985 to 1986 he worked in the Art Fund of the Union of Artists of Ukraine. Since 1986, he has been a free artist and curator of contemporary art. He has also been a participant and laureate of numerous international exhibitions, organized and held in various international exhibitions across Ukraine, Russia, the US, and Norway.After completing his military service, he founded Production Center ltd, a company engaged in film production, creating series projects for Ukrainian and Russian TV channels. After establishing the Masoch Fund, together with Igor Durich, he actively conducted various artistic projects in Ukraine, Russia, and in Germany. Since 1997, he has been engaged in the integrated design of the visual-image components of political election campaignsЧивокуня, В
''Політтехнологи на виборах-2006: хто працював на Януковича, Ахметова, Тимошенко, Медведчука…''
sd.org.ua 12.05.2006 Retrieved August 30, 2013 in both Ukraine and Russia. Since 2006, he has written, scripted, shot, and produced movies such as: *

Las Meninas ) is a 1656 painting in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, by Diego Velázquez, the leading artist of the Spanish Baroque painting, Spanish Baroque. It has become one of the most widely analyzed works in Western painting for the way its complex a ...

– 2008, full length, Ukraine *

Delirium Delirium (formerly acute confusional state, an ambiguous term that is now discouraged) is a specific state of acute confusion attributable to the direct physiological consequence of a medical condition, effects of a psychoactive substance, or ...

– 2013, full length, Ukraine, Czech Republic *

Merry-Go-Round A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...

– 2017, short length, Ukraine, Poland

Visual arts

Podolchak works in different genres of fine art –

painting Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

, prints,

photography Photography is the visual arts, art, application, and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is empl ...

video art Video art is an art form which relies on using video technology as a visual and audio medium. Video art emerged during the late 1960s as new consumer video technology such as video tape recorders became available outside corporate broadcasting. V ...

and art actions. At the beginning of his career, the graphics prevailed, and from the mid-1990s makes art actions and

performance A performance is an act or process of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Performance has evolved glo ...

s, from the late 1990s video art. In the center of Podolchak's creativity, is a human bodyГуцул, E. ''Творили два товарища… Ага''
«Зеркало недели»
№ 36 (205) 5 — 11 сентября 1998 in its various manifestations, relationships with other bodies, as well as in different stages of decomposition.Бриних, М. ''Трiумф пост-еротичного м'ясожерства, або труп гниє — мистецтво квiтне''
«Україна молода»
2000.06.15 In the artistic development of the theme of decomposition and decay there are only two types of matter, two definite formations of "flesh" – human and architectural. They are the receptacles of all sorts of energies, the connections of various

semiotic Semiotics ( ) is the systematic study of semiosis, sign processes and the communication of Meaning (semiotics), meaning. In semiotics, a Sign (semiotics), sign is defined as anything that communicates intentional and unintentional meaning or feel ...

codes – the most clearly demonstrated manifestations of regressive forces. The propensity to the metamorphoses of decomposition reveals and, in a special way, mythologizes the "corporeality" of these two organisms, and the inconstancy of the point of view on their relations in this state (fluctuations from

allegory As a List of narrative techniques, literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a wikt:narrative, narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a meaning with moral or political signi ...

to thriller), constantly improves the

iconography Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...

of Podolchak's aesthetics in general.Сидор-Гібелінда, О. ''Файні хлопці з Бандершадту.'' «Журнал Fine Art», #2, 2008 The artist's book '' Jacob Bohme'' was awarded as World's Best Book (Bronze Medal) by Stiftung Buchkunst Frankfurt am Main at

Frankfurt Book Fair The Frankfurt Book Fair (German: , FBM) is the world's largest trade fair for books, based on the number of publishing companies represented. The five-day annual event in mid-October is held at the Frankfurt Trade Fair grounds in Frankfurt am ...

. One of his 24 personal exhibitions was the first art exhibition ever to be held in space, at space station

Mir ''Mir'' (, ; ) was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, first by the Soviet Union and later by the Russia, Russian Federation. ''Mir'' was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to ...

on January 25, 1993. Artworks of Podolchak can be found in 26 museums and public collections worldwide.

Cinema

Both Podolchak's films have common characteristic features: departure from

narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether non-fictional (memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travel literature, travelogue, etc.) or fictional (fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller ...

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

of enclosed worlds, elaborated composition of frame, unusual shooting angles. The spaces of ''Las Meninas'' and ''Delirium'' are similarly dense, difficult for movement, tiresome both for the characters moving within them and the viewers watching them. This reflects the time of " the end of history" with its somnambulism, impotence, morbidity and hopelessness.

''Las Meninas''

''Las Meninas'' is Podolchak's debut full-length film. He wrote, directed and produced it. The film had a world premiere at the

International Film Festival Rotterdam International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, focused on independent and experimental films. The inaugural festival took place in June 1972, ...

in the competition program on January 25, 2008.Константинова, Катерина
''Український «натюрморт» вперше в Роттердамі''

«Дзеркало Тижня»
№ 3 (682) 26 січня — 1 лютого 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2009 Overall, it has participated in 27 international film festivals, including 10 competition programs.

''Delirium''

''Delirium'' is Podolchak's second full-length feature. Its script is based on the story ''Inductor'' by the Ukrainian writer and journalist Dmytro Belyanskyi. The film's production lasted during 2008–2010. For the first time fragments of the film were demonstrated in 2012 on the 45th

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (, KVIFF) is an annual film festival held in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has become Central and Eastern Europe, Central and Eastern Eur ...

in the program ''Films in production. New full-length films from Central and Eastern Europe''. After the prerelease screenings, Ukrainian film critics compared the second film of Podolchak to the works of

Alain Robbe-Grillet Alain Robbe-Grillet (; 18 August 1922 – 18 February 2008) was a French writer and filmmaker. He was one of the figures most associated with the ''Nouveau Roman'' () trend of the 1960s, along with Nathalie Sarraute, Michel Butor and Claude Simo ...

Pedro Costa Pedro Costa (born 30 December 1958) is a Portuguese film director. He is best known for his sequence of films set in Lisbon, which focuses on the lives of the impoverished residents of a slum in the Fontainhas neighbourhood. Biography After comp ...

and

Nikos Nikolaidis Nikos Georgiou Nikolaidis (; 25 October 1939 – 5 September 2007) was a Greek film director, screenwriter, film producer, writer, theatre director, assistant director, record producer, television director, and commercial director. He is usually ...

. Position 5 in ''Top-10 Ukrainian films of 2012'' by "Афіша@Mail.Ru".Топ-10 украинских фильмов 2012 года
Retrieved December 27, 2012

''Merry-Go-Round''

The first short length film (2017. Ukraine, Poland. 5 min). It was premiered at Revelation Perth International Film Festival on July 9, 2017 and was nominated for the Best Ukrainian Short Film at

Odesa International Film Festival The Odesa International Film Festival () is an annual film festival held in the middle of July in Odesa. Since 2016 the festival program has consisted of three parts: the International competition, National competition and European Documentary ...

Selected prizes and nominations

Prizes

* 2013 "First Prize", Baghdad International Film Festival,

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

* 1995 "Triennaleprize", 11th Norway International Print Triennial,

Fredrikstad Fredrikstad (; previously ''Frederiksstad''; literally "Fredrik's Town") is a List of cities in Norway, city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Østfold Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipal ...

* 1994 " Walter Tiemann Preis", Verein zur Förderung von Grafik und Buchkunst Leipzig e.V. an der Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

* 1990 "Latvian Artist Union Prize", Triennial of miniature graphic art,

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

* 1990 "1st Award for graphics", 5th Annual International Art Exhibition, Marietta, USA * 1989 "Diploma", International Biennial of Art ''Impreza'',

Ivano-Frankivsk Ivano-Frankivsk (, ), formerly Stanyslaviv, Stanislav and Stanisławów, is a city in western Ukraine. It serves as the administrative centre of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast as well as Ivano-Frankivsk Raion within the oblast. Ivano-Frankivsk also host ...

, Ukraine * 1988 "Prix Ex Aequo", 12th International Print Biennial,

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

* 1987 "Honorable Medal",Miejska Galeria Sztuki
. Wyroznieni. Retrieved November 5, 2009 Small Graphic Forms,

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

Nominations

* 2017 "Best Ukrainian short film",

* 2013 "National Prize",

* 2013 "Best Director" Director's Week Competition,

Fantasporto Fantasporto International Film Festival (Portuguese: Festival Internacional de Cinema do Porto) is an international genre film festival, annually organized since 1981 in Porto, Portugal. Screening and awarding fantasy, sci-fi and horror orient ...

, Oporto International Film Festival,

Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...

* 2009 "Prize",

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

Film Festival * 2008 "Tiger", 37th

* 2008 "Prize

FIPRESCI The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI, short for ''Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique'') is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the wor ...

", 7th Transilvania International Film Festival,

Cluj-Napoca Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...

* 2008 "Prize",ArtFilm International Film Festival Trencianske Teplice-Trencin. Bratislava: Art Film 2008, p. 5
OCLC 450932929
/ref> 16th Artfilm International Film Festival,

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

Sources

*
Last cantata. Ihor Podolchak : exhibition catalogue 11–28.07.2018
'. Kyiv :

Golden Section In mathematics, two quantities are in the golden ratio if their ratio is the same as the ratio of their summation, sum to the larger of the two quantities. Expressed algebraically, for quantities and with , is in a golden ratio to if \fr ...

, 2018. 38 p. *''100 Імен. Сучасне мистецтво України періоду Незалежності.'' (''100 names. Contemporary Ukrainian Art from the Independence Time.'') Київ: Видавництво "Мысль", 2008 * Bang-Heun, Cynn. ''Igor Podolchak.'' Catalog. Seoul: Ga In Gallery, 1992 * Böhme Jakob; Podolczak Igor; Tomkowski Jan. Artist's Book. Lodz: Correspondance des Arts II, 1993. * Callaghan B. ''Fifteen Years in Exile.'' Toronto: Exile Editions, 1992 * Dyurych I,; Podolchak, I
''Art in Space''
. Special Edition for São Paulo Biennial. Kyiv: Masoch Fund, 1994 * Dyurych, I.; Podolchak, Ihor
''Последний еврейский погром'' (''The Last Jewish Pogrom'').
Kyiv: Masoch Fund, 1995 * Dyurych, Ihor; Podolchak, I.; Тistol, О. ''Igor Podolchak : immoral-immortal.'' Lviv: Masoch Fund, 1999. * Ewins, R.; Colless E. ''Igor Podolchak. Ukrainian Printmaker.'' Catalog. Hobart: University of Tasmania, 1991 * Flashback. Українське медіа-мистецтво 1990-х. Ukrainian media art of the 1990s. Catalog. Curators: Oleksandr Solovyov, Solomiya Savchuk. Київ: ДП НКММК Мистецький Арсенал, 2018. — 180 p. , Pages 16, 24, 40–41, 117 * Fur, G. ''Dictionnaire du BDSM.'' Paris: La Musardine, 2016, pp. 3, 108, 153, 274. , * ''Grenzgänger: acht Künstler aus der Ukraine.'' Linz: Büro für Kulturelle Auslandsbeziehungen des Landes Oberösterreich, 1994. * Matuszak, G.; Wozniak, Taras. ''Igor Podolchak''. Lodz: Biuro Wystaw artystycznych, 1988 * Mikhaylovska O.; Podolchak, I.; Taranenko,
''Corpus delicti : post-erotic art photography.''
Prague: Masoch Fund, 1998. * Pethő, Ágnes. ''The Cinema of Sensations''. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2015, pp. 155–182, , * Pomiędzy. Polonistyczno-Ukrainoznawcze Studia Naukowe. Warsaw: University of Warsaw, Nr 1 (2015), pp. 137–14
''Ciało cierpiące jako widowisko w malarstwie Igora Podolczaka i Wasylija Cagolowa / Marta Zambrzycka''ISSN 2543-9227
* Raine, C.; Podolczak, Igor. ''Gilgamesh.'' Lodz, Poland: Book Art Museum, 1995. * Rosiak, M. ''Igor Podolczak. Grafika.'' Catalog. Poznan: Galeria'72, 1989 * Rudel, J. ''Apocalypses: Rencontres Du Manege Royal.''. La Garenne-Colombes: Editions de l'Espace européen, 1991 * Voznyak, T. ''Ihor Podolchak''. Catalog. Lviv: Ukrainian Independent Center of Contemporary Art, 1991. * Лук'янець В., Носко К. ''Де кураторство''. (''Where is the curatorial''). — Х.: IST Publishing. 2017. — 256 p. Pages 40–47. * ''Mистецька мапа України: Львів — живопис, графіка, скульптура''. (''Art Map of Ukraine: Lviv - painting, prints, sculpture.'') Kyiv: I︠U︡velir-pres, 2008.

References

External links

*
Ihor Podolchak
at

Issuu Issuu, Inc. (pronounced "issue") is a Danish-founded American electronic publishing platform based in Palo Alto, California, United States. The company's software converts PDFs into customizable digital publications that can be shared via links ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Podolchak, Ihor 1962 births Living people Artists from Lviv Film people from Lviv 20th-century Ukrainian painters 20th-century Ukrainian male artists 21st-century Ukrainian painters 21st-century Ukrainian male artists Ukrainian film producers Ukrainian film directors Ukrainian screenwriters Ukrainian film editors Ukrainian printmakers Ukrainian photographers Ukrainian etchers 20th-century etchers 20th-century printmakers Surrealist artists Ukrainian experimental filmmakers Surrealist filmmakers Ukrainian contemporary artists Ukrainian male painters