Serhiy Mykhalkiv. Intimate Portraits. Collection 6

From October 14 to November 9, 2025, the Green Sofa Gallery in Lviv will host a photography exhibition by Serhiy Mykhalkiv titled "Intimate Portraits. Collection No. 6."

"The art of fine photography is losing its position because of the millions of digital images produced every second. Due to the mass presence of amateurs, the value of photographers’ artistic work is often diminished in the eyes of a broad audience. In the pre-digital era, if a photograph wasn’t printed on paper, it was merely a negative. With this exhibition, I want to show that a materialized, printed image prevents photography from disappearing as an art form." — Serhiy Mykhalkiv

Since 1998, Serhiy Mykhalkiv has been photographing nude women. Inspired by the relaxed charm and natural beauty of the female body — a subject admired by artists throughout history — he insists that his works are not erotic. Mykhalkiv prefers the definition given by a fellow photographer, describing his style as an "intimate portrait."

Since 2007, Serhiy has participated in various exhibitions at the Green Sofa Gallery, such as "Taming Eros" and "Euro 2012." In 2017, he held his first solo exhibition at the gallery. It will be interesting to explore how his new exhibition is perceived today, eight years later, as societal views on gender, feminism, objectification of the female body, and body positivity have evolved significantly.

Will fine art photography in the nude style remain just as controversial, or will it be more positively received—or perhaps the opposite? And has the number of fine art photography collectors in Ukraine increased?

The exhibition opening: October 14, 6:00 PM

Free admission.

Gallery hours: 12:00–19:00, Tuesday–Sunday

Exhibition runs until November 9.

Biography

Serhiy Mykhalkiv was born in 1975 in Lviv. He is a professional photographer and has taught the art of photography in several photo schools. He is a two-time winner of the annual Playboy magazine competition: 2008 (1st prize) and 2012 (2nd prize). Winner of the National Union of Photographic Artists of Ukraine competition “Photoportrait” (3rd prize, 2009) and the Canon online competition in 2012.

His works are held in private collections in the United Kingdom, Germany, the USA, Poland, and Ukraine. In 2014, a series of his photographs was acquired for the photo collection of British singer and musician Elton John.