The Specific Characteristics of the Creativity of Alexander Chekmenev in the Concept of the Development of Social Documentary as a Significant Part of Contemporary Ukrainian Art Photography

Abstract

Social documentary photography is one of the key genres that Ukrainian artists use for creating a series of works presented in the form of a photo book or as an independent project. Among the most prominent representatives of this direction, Alexander Chekmenev and the members of Kharkov School of Photography (Boris Mikhailov, Evgeny Pavlov, Mikhail Pedan, etc.) should be singled out. It is notable that despite the fact that their works have common issues, the similar choice of the method and general stylistics, there are a number of significant differences. With the transfer of individual facial features, Aleksander Chekmenov seeks to reveal the psychology of the person being portrayed and elevate a person in the eyes of others, while representatives of the Kharkov school of photography use sharp, satirical language with the active inclusion of various manipulations of the image. On the basis of the art history analysis of a number of well – known projects by Alexander Chekmenev, certain regularities in the strategy of creating a social documentary project in his works have been identified.