About
Elina Yumasheva’s practice celebrates ecological consciousness and the diversity of living and non-living forms through the use of oils, pigments, natural and other non-toxic materials. Drawing from mythology, science and symbolism – she experiments with natural dyes to probe the quest for permanence while exploring the impermanence of being. As an expanded painter, her practice moves between canvas and beyond, morphing it through space, forms, mediums, techniques and the digital.
Elina explores the relationship between the artist, environment, materials and processes, where her artworks embody a dialogue between intention and unpredictability. Her practice challenges conventional ideas of control and aesthetics in artistic creation by responding to the innate characteristics of the mediums as they present themselves. The artist observes unpredictable patterns, where the materiality becomes its own source of reference. A performative element of this symbiotic process emerges, highlighting the delicate equilibrium between human intention and the energies of the natural world, inviting reflection on the beauty inherent in yielding control to the forces of creation.
The artist sees art history filled with lyrical abstraction and colour symbolism, re-invigorating them through the lens of ecological emotiveness and expression in the contemporary field. Drawing from Britain’s post-war abstract painters, Elina explores material, the painted surface, place and experience.
In her role as head of the Royal College of Art’s Sustainability Society 2023/24 (SustainLab RCA) – awarded the Society of the Year 2024 – she champions eco-conscious creativity. Together with the SustainLab RCA community, Elina led the society’s largest-ever annual exhibition ‘Co-creating With Nature’, bringing together over 30 leading artists and designers who embed sustainability through materials and processes across the Royal College of Art.
Elina Yumasheva holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Science from the University of Edinburgh and an MA in Contemporary Art Practice from the Royal College of Art 2024. She has recently exhibited at the Tate Modern Lates and 54 The Gallery. Her duo exhibition was named the top five in London by FAD Magazine.
CV
Here you can access Elina’s curriculum vitae in a pdf format.
Education
September 2024
Royal College of Art, MA Contemporary Art Practice, London, United Kingdom
June 2021
The Art Academy London, Certificate in Painting, London, United Kingdom
September 2011
The University of Edinburgh, MSc, Environmental Protection & Management, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Selected Exhibitions
September 2024
From the One to the Many, Saatchi Gallery
London, United Kingdom
Sep-Nov 2024
This and Other Worldly Glimpse, IAG Exhibitions
London, United Kingdom
May 2024
’Wunderkammer’, 54 The Gallery
London, United Kingdom
May 2024
Co-creating With Nature, Upper Gulbenkian Gallery, RCA
London, United Kingdom
April 2024
RCA CAP Broadcast & Screening, Tate Modern Lates
London, United Kingdom
February 2024
Rites and Rituals, Safehouse
London, United Kingdom
February 2024
Everything Must Go, The Cookhouse Gallery
London, United Kingdom
November 2023
No Man’s Land–Terra Nullius, Dyson Gallery, RCA
London, United Kingdom
July-Aug 2023
‘Exquisite Codes’, Bla-bla Projectarium
‘Art-teenth’, Court Square Exchange
Berlin, Germany/Connecticut, USA
October 2022
‘TERRA’, Espacio Gallery
London, United Kingdom
April – May 2022
‘Ambient Anxiety’, Curious Kudu Gallery
London, United Kingdom
Nominations & Positions Held
2023-2024
Royal College of Art, SustainLab RCA, Head
Leading the efforts of the sustainability society (SustainLab RCA) at the Royal College of Art in finding new ways to express creativity while taking into account environmental and social aspects.
2023-2024
Royal College of Art, Environmental Sustainability Committee, Member
2020-2021
Art Academy London, Equality & Diversity Working Group, Member
Residency
January-February 2023
Ryuhyo – exploration of drift ice, Hokkaido, Japan
Selected Press
January 2024
The DODO ‘No Man’s Land’ Review (print)
May 2022
Brixton Blog ‘Troubled journeys and seductive places’
May 2022
Ambient & Ambienti ‘Ambient Anxiety: when art and sustainability collide’
May 2022
Brixton Bugle ‘Ambient Anxiety in Curious Kudu’
April 2022
FAD Magazine ‘The top 5 art exhibitions to see in South London’
Curatorial Projects, Workshops & Talks
May 2024
Co-creating With Nature, Upper Gulbenkian & Hockney Gallery, RCA
Annual SustainLab RCA exhibition, London, United Kingdom
March 2024
SustainLab Talk: What’s the post-RCA world like for eco-conscious artists and designers?
Gorvy Lecture Theatre, Dyson Building, Battersea, RCA, London, United Kingdom
February 2024
SustainLab Talk: How do we align our creative practice with naturally sourced materials?
Lecture Theatre 1, Kensington, Darwin Building, RCA, London, United Kingdom
November 2023
No Man’s Land–Terra Nullius, Dyson Gallery, RCA
Non-academic show, London, United Kingdom