He exhibited at the Ukraine Pavilion of the 56th Venice Biennale in 2015. He is a contemporary artist who has presented his work in major museums around the world, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Kunsthaus Zurich, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp. Born in Kyiv in 1982, he is currently based in Kyiv and explores history, memory, and the traces that war leaves on people's lives through sculpture, installation, and charcoal drawings.
Nikita Kadan
Nikita Kadan
Ukraine
⬤ Works in 2026
“Night”
Charcoal on paper / Set of 5 / 297 × 420 mm each / 2026
⬤ About the artist
Nikita Kadan is a contemporary artist based in Kyiv, Ukraine, who continues to explore history, memory, and the traces that war and violence leave on society. He works across installations, sculptures, paintings, and charcoal drawings, and has collaborated with historians, architects, and human rights activists. He exhibited at the Ukraine Pavilion at the 2015 Venice Biennale and has presented his work at the Centre Pompidou and the Kunsthaus Zurich, among others. In his work, he traces the traces left in documentary photographs, ruins, and architecture, exploring from whose perspective history is told and what experiences have been overlooked. His latest work, "Night," is also based on actual experience. For Kadan, art is an activity of looking at life from different angles and creating perspectives to notice what was previously unseen.
⬤ Biography
Born in Kyiv in 1982. Graduated from the National Academy of Fine Arts (Kyiv) in 2007. Currently based in Kyiv.
He works on installations, sculptures, paintings, and graphics, and also collaborates across disciplines with historians, architects, and human rights activists. He is a member of the artist group REP (Revolutionary Experimental Space) and a founding member of Hudrada (Artistic Committee), a collective that focuses on curation and social activism.
His works have been exhibited at the Kunsthaus Zurich, Centre Pompidou (Paris), Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp, Museum of Modern Art for Castle of Rivoli (Turin), National Gallery Prague, and Museum of Modern Art Warsaw, among others. In 2015, he presented his work at the Ukraine Pavilion of the 56th Venice Biennale.