Maria Kulikovska born (1988) and grew up in the ancient city of Kerch on the edge of the Crimea peninsula (Ukraine), where she cannot return since the illegal annexation of the peninsula by Russia.
Maria is a multimedia artist, architect, actionist-performer, researcher and lecturer in exile.
In Kyiv, she completed her master's degree at the National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture (2007-2013) in Architecture of Buildings and Structures. She is currently completing her second master's program in fine arts at Europe's leading University – Konsfack in Stockholm, Sweden.
Since March 8 Maria began working with architect-engineer Uleg Vinnichenko, who became technical director, co-researcher and co-author of Maria's projects and her loved partner.
Uleg Vinnichenko is an architect-engineer, researcher and developer of experimental innovative building materials and structures. He was born 1978 in the city of "Rad Factory" in the Poltava region.
In May 2017, Maria and Uleg officially founded the School of Political Performance in Kyiv.
Since January 2020, Uleg Vinnichenko is co-founder and director of the first international Gallery-Shelter "Garage 33" for the artists from "conflict?" in Kyiv.
The series 'Carpe Diem' consists from 5 body-casts, created through the process of the moulding forms from the artist's body. All sculptures are cast in epoxy resin with embedded metaphorical objects inside. They all share the traumatic memories and experiences of the artist life through the symbols and various elements buried under the skin of the sculptures.
Perfromative sculptures from the series "Carpe Diem" were exhibited in different exhibitions and events such as:
PERMANENT REVOLUTION – an exhibition of Ukrainian contemporary art in Ludwig Museum in Budapest; and at the exhibition of 5th years of Vogue UA magazine –
Ukraine in Fashion.