Anna Shustikova
December 2024
Anna Shustikova was born in 1992 in Samara, Russia. They grew up in a small nuclear town in the Penza region and earned a bachelor’s degree in physics in 2014. For several years, they worked as a scientific journalist, while also developing an interest in documentary photography.
In 2018, Anna enrolled in the Marina Razbezhkina and Mikhail Ugarov School of Documentary Film and Theatre in Moscow. During their studies, Anna’s focus shifted from photography and filmmaking to other media, such as physical objects, sculpture, text, and neural networks. However, their background in both science and documentary continues to influence their artistic practice today.
In 2020, Anna entered the Rodchenko Art School in Moscow. It was there that they began to explore the history of science, modern technologies, and their connection to mechanisms of oppression, particularly from feminist and queer perspectives. In one of their early projects, You Can Touch, You Can Play (2021), Anna examined the representation of women and existing biases in contemporary text-to-image neural networks.
After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Anna began to focus more on topics related to the problematic Soviet past. Memories and quiet voices became central to their work. In 2023, Anna graduated from the Rodchenko Art School with a project titled Annushka, which encapsulates their current artistic approach.
In 2020, Anna entered the Rodchenko Art School in Moscow. It was there that they began to explore the history of science, modern technologies, and their connection to mechanisms of oppression, particularly from feminist and queer perspectives. In one of their early projects, You Can Touch, You Can Play (2021), Anna examined the representation of women and existing biases in contemporary text-to-image neural networks.
After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Anna began to focus more on topics related to the problematic Soviet past. Memories and quiet voices became central to their work. In 2023, Anna graduated from the Rodchenko Art School with a project titled Annushka, which encapsulates their current artistic approach.
This project tells the fragmented story of women involved in the Soviet atomic program, based on Anna’s family history, memoirs of radiochemists, and the stories behind the names of materials and reactors. It questions how memory of scientific and military projects is constructed, and how feminine, personal, and corporeal experiences are often excluded from such narratives. Annushka was presented as an installation of fragile sculptures, accompanied by a zine containing a written story.
In 2023, Anna also participated in the Erasmus exchange program, spending a semester at l’École nationale supérieure d'arts de Paris-Cergy (ENSAPC). They now live and work in Paris, France. Anna prefers to work with fragile and transformative materials, creating sculptures and installations from substances such as glass, soap, salts, and other materials that can be deformed by heat or water. Their projects are often based on documentary materials, direct speech, and memories. They remain focused on themes related to Soviet history, the history of science, and quiet voices, with feminist and queer perspectives integral to their practice.
In 2023, Anna also participated in the Erasmus exchange program, spending a semester at l’École nationale supérieure d'arts de Paris-Cergy (ENSAPC). They now live and work in Paris, France. Anna prefers to work with fragile and transformative materials, creating sculptures and installations from substances such as glass, soap, salts, and other materials that can be deformed by heat or water. Their projects are often based on documentary materials, direct speech, and memories. They remain focused on themes related to Soviet history, the history of science, and quiet voices, with feminist and queer perspectives integral to their practice.
© Vera Salnitskaya
@a__shust