MENTAL IMAGE

Oleg Kulik is one of Russia's most famous contemporary artists. He won great international acclaim after the fall of the Soviet Union, together with other Russian artists such as Ilya Kabakov. Kulik was a protégé of Boris Orlov. His early performances originated directly from the brutal, criminal realities of Russia in the 1990's. Kulik questions the essence of what it means to be human and illustrates what it may be like to revert back to the state of being an 'original animal'. His performances such as 'Mad Dog', 'Reservoir Dog' and 'I Bite America and America Bites Me' have attracted attention from art critics and curators throughout the world. In these renowned performances he assumes the role of an 'artist-animal', such as a dog, a bird, a fish or a bull. The artist even founded an 'animal party' in Russia and announced himself a candidate in the general presidential election, disguised as a bull. Kulik was born 1961 in Kyjiw, Ukraine and lives in Moscow, Russia.