Kot Valeriy - Ukrainian artist
Valeriy Kot — a talented Ukrainian Surrealist artist whose work unites architectural precision with boundless imagination. His paintings are permeated by the philosophical concept of Time and the idealization of the World.
Valerii Kot began working in the Surrealism genre in 1977, having been fascinated by its ideas since his student years. On April 1, 1979, he participated in his first exhibition, "Avant-garde painting in the works of architecture faculty students," held at the October Palace in Kyiv.
In 1981, he graduated from the Kyiv University of Construction and Architecture, receiving a higher architectural education. Until 1985, he worked in his specialty at design institutes in Kyiv, after which he definitively decided to change professions and become a professional artist.
Since 1986, the artist began actively participating in vernissages on Andriyivskyy Descent in Kyiv. In 1988, he presented his works at the exhibition "Contemporary Ukrainian Painting" at the Teacher's House.
His collaboration with the "Bost-Art" gallery began in 1990 (we previously published an article about the Kyiv gallery from the 1990s Bost Art), where he participated in exhibitions at the "Ukrainian House" center, including "The Seeing Will See" (1990) and "Destroyers of Traditions" (1991). His solo exhibitions took place in 1990 and 1992.
International exhibition activity began in 1991 with participation in an exhibition at the Eurocenter, Berlin. In 1994, he participated in the "Masters of Surrealism" exhibition at the Kyiv galleries "At Spaskaya street" and "Homeland." In subsequent years, 1995 and 1997, his works were exhibited abroad, particularly at the "Azur" gallery in the city of Spa (Belgium). Currently, Valeriy Kot actively paints and regularly participates in various exhibitions. His paintings are represented in many private collections in Ukraine, European countries, and the USA.
The concept of his work is based on creating a complex and dynamic composition that unites the irrational and the naturalistic, where the beauty and mystery of images stand against the chaos of existence, embodying the hope for eternal values.
