Sergey Balovin (born 5 July 1984,

Voronezh Voronezh ( ; , ) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the Southeastern Railway, which connects wes ...

, Russia) is a

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 ...

and

curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

. In 2011, to escape the conventional application of monetary value to art, he started the popular " In Kind Exchange" project in which he is exchanging artworks for useful presents. The project has attracted a lot of attention around the world. In 2013 he started his money-free world tour with "In Kind Exchange", traveling the world and swapping portraits for flight tickets, food, accommodation, without spending any money. Since 2015 Sergey Balovin has been working with Claudia Beccato, Italian

gastronome Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well versed in gastr ...

and artist. In 2016 Sergey Balovin is on the list of the Database and Analytics of Russian Contemporary Art as 20th of the Top 100 young artists and as 16th according to the list of People's rating.

Biography

Sergey Balovin grew up in Voronezh, in western Russia in a family of geologists and studied fine art from a very young age. In 1996 he graduated from Fine Art School and in 2005 graduated from Art Faculty of the Voronezh State Pedagogical University. At 17 years old he went on to teach art at Studio I, School of Architecture and Design. Four years later, he began working at the Pedagogical University, teaching painting and organizing group exhibitions featuring young artists from Voronezh. His class soon began a creative and associative meeting point for students. Due to clear limitations in Russian academic education, and being greatly inspired by French, German, and Belgian artists encountered, he taught himself

contemporary art Contemporary art is a term used to describe the art of today, generally referring to art produced from the 1970s onwards. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a ...

. From 2008 to 2010 he curated the "Petit" project with Louise Morin in which they featured several dozen artists from Europe, Asia, and America. The project participants reflected on the topic of "mobility" and created artworks around this theme. More than a hundred pieces were placed in a single suitcase, enabling the curators to cross country borders and represent this "contraband art". The project united some dozens of artists form

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and was presented in France, Germany, Russia, and China, including

Moscow International Biennale for Young Art The Moscow International Biennale for Young Art (MIBYA) is a major contemporary visual art exhibition that focuses on the work of artists and curators under the age of 35. It aims to bring together new artistic initiatives from Russia and the world ...

, Red Gate Residency in

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

and Art Labor Gallery in

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

. In 2009 Sergey Balovin was invited to

Jinan Jinan is the capital of the province of Shandong in East China. With a population of 9.2 million, it is one of the largest cities in Shandong in terms of population. The area of present-day Jinan has played an important role in the history of ...

, to open his solo show—about a hundred paintings reflecting Chinese

stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalization, generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can ...

views of Russian contemporary art. The series of deliberately beautiful landscapes with golden frames was a parody of 19th-century Russian painting. The artworks were successfully sold in a few days and the artist decided to move to China to improve his financial well-being. But he soon realized he was becoming more focused on consumer demand than his art vision. He decided to cease sales and, to prevent himself from repeating past mistakes, he performed «Euthanasia», a radical act, destroying his entire oil landscape exhibition, which had been painted according to consumer taste, with a bulldozer (an allusion to the

Bulldozer Exhibition The Bulldozer Exhibition () was an unofficial art exhibition on a vacant lot in the Belyayevo urban forest (Bitsa Park) by Moscow and Leningrad avant-garde artists on 15 September 1974. The exhibition was forcefully broken-up by a large police ...

). The «Euthanasia» project was represented in IFA Gallery. In 2010, refusing to put a price on his artworks, he launched "In Kind Exchange" where he drew portraits and exchanged them for currency-free presents. In 2011 his "In Kind Exchange" project was selected for

Sergey Kuryokhin Sergey Anatolyevich Kuryokhin (16 June 19549 July 1996, nicknamed The Captain) was a Russian composer, pianist, music director, experimental artist, film actor and writer, based in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was an influential fig ...

Modern Art Award and in 2012 the artist was in residence at Swatch Art Peace Hotel. The project got amazing feedback in social media and he soon began to receive invitations from all over the world from people who wanted their portraits done. In 2013 finally ready, he started his Money Free World Trip, painting for food, lodging, and transportation. The journey ensuing lasted 17 months and covered 36 countries and created over 5,000 portraits and got the same amount of gifts in return. Since 2015 he has been working with Claudia Beccato. They met on Sergey Balovin's "In Kind Exchange" tour in Europe. In the summer of 2016, they got married at Dukley European Art Community in

Kotor Kotor (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Котор, ), historically known as Cattaro (from Italian language, Italian: ), is a town in Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. The city has ...

, during their art residency program. They celebrated their money-free wedding, opening the exhibition "The Wedding s it should be" The artists represented with collage on canvas all the elements of a classical wedding, without possessing anything and spending any penny.

In Kind Exchange

"In Kind Exchange" is an

interactive art Interactive art is a form of art that involves the spectator in a way that allows the art to achieve its purpose. Some interactive art installations achieve this by letting the observer walk through, over or around them; others ask the artist ...

project by artists Sergey Balovin and Claudia Beccato, which consists in the

barter In trade, barter (derived from ''bareter'') is a system of exchange (economics), exchange in which participants in a financial transaction, transaction directly exchange good (economics), goods or service (economics), services for other goods ...

of their art to everything they need for living, from food to technologies, from clothes to flight tickets. In 2011 the project was nominated for

Modern Art Award.

Description of the project

Offering a visual artwork (usually it's a portrait), the artists receive a useful present in return. Differently from the traditional barter dynamics, “In Kind Exchange” consists in an exchange in which the two parties (the user and the artists) do not discuss the value of the exchanged objects. The project expects mutual appreciation and respect. The artist does not guarantee realistic portrait of the model and the choice of the present is at the user's discretion. There is a “wish list” redacted by Claudia Beccato and Sergey Balovin that helps people choosing among the artists needs. The economic value of the gift does not alter the size and the quality of the artwork.

Origins and development of the project

The idea of the “In-Kind Exchange” project came to Sergey Balovin in

in 2011, when he moved to a new and empty apartment. He started to swap his drawings in exchange for furniture and household appliances with a neighbor about to move out. Soon the artist systematized the process of exchange, publishing on social media invitations to take part in the project. The participants met the artist e chose one of the two or three ink sketches made, offering in exchange whatever they believe could be useful to the artist's apartment. In few months the artist was able to furnish his apartment with the presents got by barter. He got everything, from dishes to furniture and household appliances. Therefore, the artist realized the possibility to live with the only exchange system and started to organize performances focused on different needs: from food to clothes (titles of some performances: “Feed the Artist”, “Dress up the Artist”, and “Get the artist drunk”). In 2012 Sergey Balovin won the competition to participate in the Swatch Art Peace Hotel residency program. For 6 months he lived in a luxury apartment and worked in his studio in the downtown of Shanghai.Один день человека, который не пользуется деньгами
LiveJournal, 15.06.2012 Continuing to barter for his living, he began to live without money. After the publication of his article “One Day of the man who refused money” on

Livejournal LiveJournal (), stylised as LiVEJOURNAL, is a Russian-owned social networking service where users can keep a blog, journal, or diary. American programmer Brad Fitzpatrick started LiveJournal on April 15, 1999, as a way of keeping his high school ...

, he got a lot of feedback from all over the world, positive and negative. He started to receive invitations from all the continents from people who wanted to take part in the project. So in 2012, he planned a new experiment: his money-free world tour in “In-Kind Exchange”. The trip lasted 17 months. Sergey Balovin traveled the world, from East to West, visiting 36 Countries. He exchanged portraits for food, flight tickets, and accommodation without spending any penny. In 2015 the project made Sergey Balovin meet Claudia Beccato, who became his wife. The next stage of the In-Kind Exchange was their wedding without money. They celebrated their wedding by opening the exhibition “The Wedding s it should be�� at European Dukley Art Community in

, Montenegro. Not a penny was spent on the celebration and all the traditional wedding material attributes were present on the walls as collages. After the opening, there was a party and all the food was exchanged. “The Wedding s it should be�� is a grotesque representation of the consumer society.Izložba i svadba: Neobičan projekat Sergeja Balovina u Kotoru
CDM, 13.08.2016 It is estimated that since his launch, the “In-Kind Exchange” project has involved 8,000 people.

Interesting facts

Among the most unusual presents received in exchange for a portrait are a drum set, a gold medal

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ), also , is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tī'' in Okinawan) un ...

, and a strip dance. Among the most expensive: MacBook Air, iPhone 5S, Round the World flight ticket (Shanghai - Mexico City - Buenos Aires - Santiago - Moscow – Shanghai). Among the most useless: expired driver's license, a lighter (presented by the Minister of Culture of

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

), several dozen artist portraits. Among the famous people involved in the "barter": the Minister of Finance of Switzerland Amman Schneider, the Minister of Culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Oleg Garkusha, designer

Artemy Lebedev Artemy Andreyevich Lebedev () is a Russian designer and businessman. He is the founder of the design company Art. Lebedev Studio. He is also an avid blogger, known for his rather provocative views and frequent usage of obscene language. Biograp ...

Marat Gelman Marat Aleksandrovich GelmanOfficial (in the passport) Latin-graphics spelling of his last name is Guelman as in French. (; born 24 December 1960) is a Russian collector, gallerist, and op-ed columnist. The former director of PERMM contemporar ...

, blogger Ilya Varlamov, composer Grigory Gladkov, film director Eldar Salavatov, traveler-presenter Andrey Ponkratov, traveller-photographer Sergey Dolya. Russian

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

named Sergey Balovin among the 5 people in the World who «refused money and did not die». In 2016 Sergey Balovin and Claudia Beccato invented a new portrait technique which consists in painting the model's face over a black and white photo of an alien person.Sergej Balovin gost sarajevske 'Čarlame'
Federal Sarajevo, 28.08.2016

Press

, TV Kultura, 6 July 2011 # ttp://www.museum.gorodovoy.spb.ru/news/760742.shtml "Натуральный обмен. Проект художника Сергея Баловина" Museums News of Saint Petersburg, 13 August 2011
"Один день из жизни в „нехорошей квартирке“"
XXL, 22 March 2012
Сергей Баловин. Интервью
Россия 24 News, 17 April 2012
"Портрет в обмен на сок, пирог, печенья и сканворд
, 48.RU, 25 April 2012

, IFA Gallery, Shanghai, 30 June 2012

,

Swissinfo SWI swissinfo.ch is a Swiss Multilingualism, multilingual international news and information company based in Bern. It is a part of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR). Its content is Swiss-centred, with top priority given to in-depth ...

, 13 July 2012 #
Ipak se od umjetnosti živjeti može
", Ziher, 27 March 2013 #
Piktori shëtitës, portret në këmbim të një dhurate
, MAPO, 8 April 2013 #
«Утро»: художник Сергей Баловин
, Moscow 24, 4 March 2013 #
Портрет без монет. Воронежский художник путешествует без денег
, AIF, 27 3 July 2013

, Моё, 15 February 2013 # "[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/26/sergey-balovin-in-kind-exchange-russian-artist-lives-money-free-in-shanghai_n_2954796.html Sergey Balovin’s ‘In Kind Exchange’: Russian Portrait Artist Lives...] ", HuffPost, The Huffington Post 26 March 2013 #
Russian Artist Sergey Balovin and the In-Kind Exchange Project: How He Lives Without Money
, YAHOO!, 28 March 2013 #
Сергей Баловин: Художник не должен голодать
, Arterritory, 2 August 2013 #
Of Bulldozers and Nail Houses
, P.I.G. China, 7 December 2012 #
Painting portraits to sustain a lifestyle with no money
, Visual News, 25 March 2013 #
Get the picture
,

South China Morning Post The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remaine ...

, 27 June 2013 #
Russian Artist Living on No Income
, The Echo, 15 April 2013 #
Artista demuestra que es posible vivir y viajar sin dinero
, Mariana Tiquet, Mexico, 18 July 2014 #
Sergey Balovin, the artist who’s travelling the world without money
, Mumbai DNA, 29 June 2014 #
Feed the artist and get your portrait made.
, Contemporary Food Lab, 2015 #
Вокруг света без денег: Художник путешествует по миру за портреты
, Тут и там, 17 February 2016 #
Обменный пункт, Псковская Губерния
, Gubernia online, 11 July 2016 #
Izložba i svadba: Neobičan projekat Sergeja Balovina u Kotoru
, Crna Gora, 13 August 2016 #

, ПЛН, 29 June 2016 #
Arte e coraggio di Sergey Balovin
, My Personal Mind, 6 November 2016 #
Sergej Balovin večeras predstavlja svoj rad sarajevskoj publici
, Depo, 30 August 16 #
Sergej Balovin gost sarajevske ‘Čarlame
��", Federalna TV, Sarajevo, 28 August 2016 #
Artisti (russi) di tutto il mondo, benvenuti in Montenegro
, alfabeta2, 4 December 2016

For In Kind Exchange

#
Sergej Balovin večeras predstavlja svoj rad sarajevskoj publici
, Depo, 30 August 16 #
Sergej Balovin gost sarajevske ‘Čarlame
��", Federalna TV, Sarajevo, 28 August 2016 #
Artisti (russi) di tutto il mondo, benvenuti in Montenegro
, alfabeta2, 4 December 2016 #
Обменный пункт, Псковская Губерния
, Gubernia online, 11 July 2016 #
Izložba i svadba: Neobičan projekat Sergeja Balovina u Kotoru
, Crna Gora, 13 August 2016 #

, ПЛН, 29 June 2016 #
Russian Artist Living on No Income
, The Echo, 15 April 2013 #
Artista demuestra que es posible vivir y viajar sin dinero
, Mariana Tiquet, Mexico, 18 July 2014 #
Sergey Balovin, the artist who’s travelling the world without money
, Mumbai DNA, 29 June 2014 #
Feed the artist and get your portrait made.
, Contemporary Food Lab, 2015 #

, YAHOO!, 28 March 2013 # "[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/26/sergey-balovin-in-kind-exchange-russian-artist-lives-money-free-in-shanghai_n_2954796.html Sergey Balovin’s ‘In Kind Exchange’: Russian Portrait Artist Lives...] ", The Huffington Post 26 March 2013 #
Ipak se od umjetnosti živjeti može
", Ziher, 27 March 2013
"Один день из жизни в „нехорошей квартирке“"
XXL, 22 March 2012
Сергей Баловин. Интервью
Россия 24 News, 17 April 2012

References

Links

Balovin&Beccato
website {{DEFAULTSORT:Balovin, Sergey Living people Russian male artists 1984 births