Paper Dreams or the Confession of a "Modest Recording Apparatus"

Surrealists perceived the photographic process as automatic, where the photographer acts only as a recorder of reality, rather than its creator. This approach was embodied in the idea of mental automatism, formulated by André Breton in the "First Manifesto of Surrealism." Thus, the camera was likened to a "modest recording apparatus," and automatic writing was understood as a "true photograph of thought." In her essay "The Photographic Conditions of Surrealism," Rosalind Krauss noted that photography in surrealism served to create a "gap" effect, a break in the synchronous experience of reality that disrupts the illusion of the unity of the moment. Today, in an era of media circulation of images, where technology has been delegated to perform actions that shape the landscape of modern life, artists are questioning the agency of devices, challenging the very nature of discrete reproduction of reality. In this context, the surreal “pure automatism” redefines our relationship with technology, where analog devices return temporality and the human dimension. Nikita Makeev and the AF group transform the Zimnyaya Gallery into a giant camera obscura: the space is endowed with subjectivity and becomes a tool for capturing reality — throughout the exhibition project, it “photographs” a panoramic view of Kapustinsky Bay and the surrounding areas. The viewer has the opportunity to find themselves inside a massive “device” and observe the gradual development of the exhibition. Previously, Nikita Makeev and AF have already created similar situations for the Arbuzz, VS-Gallery, Here on Taganka, TEXTURA Gallery, Gallery on Kashirka, and No name for now galleries, and at the 2026 Bolotnaya Biennale, the artist received the "Aluminum Reed" prize for his installation. Curator: Nikita Spiridonov Members of the AF Association: Nikita Makeev, Evgeny Zamyatin, Vadim Senin, Olga Rerikh, Olga Roerich, Rimma Mustafina, Elena Markevich, Mono Katya, Max Dostar, MaxFox, Alexandra Timokhina, Yaroslav Chalenko

Published on June 20, 2026