The Archive

In 2018 Garage acquired one third of the archive left behind by the renowned Russian artist Vladislav Mamyshev‑Monroe (1969–2013). The other two parts belong to Moscow Museum of Modern Art and the Vladislav Mamyshev‑Monroe Foundation.

Garage Archive holdings include texts written by the artist, his letters, possessions, books, and a compilation of publications on the artist. Amongst the materials are the self‑published magazines Kh.V.Z (Khochu Vse Znat’, 1997) and M.V.U. (1994), texts written for Monroe’s first solo show Flora and Fauna. Painting & Petting (with Bella Matveeva), full “profiles” of the characters impersonated by the artist, manuscripts and drafts for works of literature, preparatory sketches for installations, parts of stage costumes, and works by other artists given to him as gifts.

The Vladislav Mamyshev‑Monroe archive comprises biographical material that allows researchers to trace the career of the artist and study possible sources of his individual mythmaking.

The Artist

Vladislav Mamyshev‑Monroe (1969–2013) was a Russian artist and writer active in the 1990s and 2000s. His work includes dozens of photographic series and impersonations of famous historical and cultural figures. In 1990, together with Yuri Lesnik, Timur Novikov and Georgy Guryanov. he founded Pirate TV. Together with Sergei Bugaev (Afrika), Olesya Turkina, and Viktor Mazin he published the journal Kabinet. In 2004, Monroe was the presenter of “Rozovy blo” (Pink Section) on Artemy Troitsky’s TV show Priznaky zhizny (Signs of Life). He was awarded the Innovation Prize in 2014 and the Kandinsky Prize in 2007.

Gender check. Femininity and masculinity in the art of Eastern Europe