Kitanna Ria

It is difficult for me to place my work within a single genre. What unites all my pieces is a persistent narrative – even in what may first appear as pure abstraction, there is always a story.

I have previously described myself as a psychedelic, abstract, and surrealist artist. Over time I moved beyond these labels. My perspective now feels broader than any one of these definitions.

I draw inspiration from written symbols and calligraphy, as well as from the mythologies of many different cultures. In Japan, seven precise and gentle brushstrokes can form a complete symbol. The spiritual descendants of the Aztecs believed that matter could be attracted by a single thread of thought. The eternal, flat geometry of Egyptian ornament pushes me toward something more fluid and organic.

I resist being defined by one nationality or culture. I began my artistic career in Russia. I am Armenian by ethnicity. I lived and studied for periods in Austria and England, and I have travelled extensively – feeling at home almost everywhere I went.

My practice currently focuses on painting and drawing, often exploring the intersection of mythology, calligraphy, and abstract form. Alongside original works, I develop related projects that extend the im...

Exhibitions:

2026
14.05–10.06.2026 – “Important Questions” (Moscow, Russia)

2025
18.12.2025–15.01.2026 – “Miracle” (Moscow, Russia)
26.06–20.07.2025 – “Ptash-Collage” (Moscow, Russia)
17.04–04.05.2025 – “Material” (Moscow, Russia)
26.12.2024–12.01.2025 – “Are You Sure You’re an Artist? and Other Annoying Cliches” (Moscow, Russia)

2024
28.11–22.12.2024 — Solo exhibition “The Game of You” (Moscow, Russia)
07.11–24.11.2024 – “The Outcasts” (Moscow, Russia)
23.05–30.05.2024 – Solo exhibition “Tea with Dragon” (Yerevan, Armenia)
18.04–18.06.2024 – "Dialogue with Soul" (Moscow, Russia)

2023
06.03–06.04.2023 – Solo exhibition “Art Spirit” (Moscow, Russia)
2022
27.03–20.04.2022 – “Pomor Pattern” (Moscow, Russia)
09.03–15.04.2022 – Solo exhibition “Your Unconscious” (Moscow, Russia)

2021
21.09–20.11.2021 – Solo exhibition “Dark Fairy Tales of the Rabbit Hole” (Moscow, Russia)

2019–2020
05.10.2019–20.04.2020 – “Rethinking 2.0” (Kimry, Russia)

2017 – 2018
18.12.2017-06.01.2018 – Single Grain of Rise (Paris, France);
06.10.2017-31.01.2018 – Solo exhibition "Despite Superstition". (Moscow, Russia);
21.09.2017 – Glich Augmentation (Moscow, Russia)

2016
26.08.2016-28.08.2016 – Art.Who.Art 8 (Moscow, Russia);
01.07.2016 – The opening of s...