On a building wall in Jacksonville, Florida, there’s a bizarre, fantastic mural of a man running while holding what appears to be a huge part of an ocean with a whale swimming in it.
The artwork symbolizes activists desperately fighting to protect the planet from manmade harm. By doing so, it aims to raise awareness about one of the most endangered large whale species.
It is also one of the most difficult murals done by Ukrainian Vladimir Manzhos, 39, known under his artistic name Waone, who is a former member of the Interesni Kazki duo.
Jacksonville’s piece called “Danger of Extinction” is just one of many murals in all corners of the world where Manzhos has left his signature along with a very distinctive visual style, filled with details and fantastic plots.
Many of those murals along with the artist’s graphic works on paper and canvas have been compiled into his recent artbook “Worlds of Phantasmagoria. Vol.1.” The first edition of a series of publications showcasing Manzhos’ heritage contains his black-and-white pieces and is a big milestone for the world-renowned artist.
“I have been dreaming of this book for the last 10 years,” Manzhos told the Kyiv Post.
“Worlds of Phantasmagoria. Vol.1” is the recent book by Ukrainian artist Vladimir Manzhos, known under his nickname Waone. The publication features monochrome murals and other pieces by Manzhos. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
The 208-page heavy edition with introduction and art descriptions in English came out in November. It is available to order online via Manzhos’ website or at The Naked Room gallery for nearly $80.
Evolution of style
Manzhos’ distinctive style had a long way to go before it acquired the current shape.
His love for art dates as far back as he can remember thanks to his father, who collected rare pieces by local creators, art books and illustrated Soviet magazines. Since a very early age, Manzhos explored artistic expression through different forms from plasticine sculpting to drawing and finally painting.
Fascinated by the rising street art culture, in the early 2000s, Manzhos mostly painted graffiti and was part of a Kyiv-based crew Ingenious Kids.
His first graffiti, however, was rather accidental. After finding spray paint that his father used for his car, Manzhos covered the neighborhood’s walls with random quotes, faces and letters.
“It seemed to me that this is what real graffiti should look like,” Manzhos jokes.
Vladimir Manzhos, also known as Waone, is a Ukrainian artist who painted elaborate murals all around the world both as a member of the Interesni Kazki duo and during his solo career. (Vadim Khudoliy)
That’s when the artist came up with his nickname, Waone, which phonetically resembled Vavan, a common form for calling Vladimir in Ukraine, and had a street-style color.
That was also about the time Manzhos met his future painting partner, artist Oleksiy Bordusov, or AEC, with whom he later formed Interesni Kazki (Interesting Fairytales in Ukrainian). The name reflected on the style the two developed together — surreal, mystical characters in fantastic circumstances and stories, painted in bright colors and in great detail.
One of their most famous works in Kyiv, “Saint George,” portrays a Cossack with a human body and an eagle head that cuts up a snake that has no head but two human hands on both ends.
Interesni Kazki broke ground creating the first mural in post-Soviet countries in Crimea in 2005. They went on to become some of the most recognizable Ukrainian artists abroad, holding exhibitions in France, Italy and the United States, and covering dozens of walls globally, from Canada and Brazil to India and Australia, with magnifying bizarre creatures.
Though the two parted ways in 2016, the themes they explored together still dominate Manzhos’ solo pieces.
“Science fiction and surrealism that fascinated me since childhood are embodied in the plots of my works,” the artist says.
Although Manzhos is best known for artwork dazzling with colors, over the last years, he shifted to black and white. His style also became even more elaborate with the artist using tiny thin strokes and lines to create characters, objects and landscapes.
These pieces of the new solo period in the artist’s career are featured in “Worlds of Phantasmagoria. Vol.1.”
Sacred book
Manzhos’ book is a big heavy publication with thick pages filled with full-page or even spread-sized monochrome paintings. The stylishly designed paperback has an introduction, the artist’s bio and pictures.
Just like all Manzhos’ work, the book’s name is a complementing blend of a message and the visuals. Not only does “phantasmagoria” stand for some sort of a bizarre or fantastic collection, it’s also an aesthetic combination of letters, according to Manzhos.
Created throughout 2013–2020, the artworks are arranged in chronological order and are accompanied by short descriptions explaining Manzhos’ messages and ideas.
One of them is the artist’s first ever black-and-white mural, “Matter: Changing States.” Painted on a large wall in India in 2016, the piece features steam clouds with eyes or legs, highlighting the pressing issue of global warming and its effect on humans — a repetitive theme in Manzhos’ art.
“The idea of this work surfaced when my brain was melting and evaporating under the white-hot sun of Southern India,” Manzhos says in the book.
The mural “Matter: Changing States” by Ukrainian artist Vladimir Manzhos, also known as Waone, was painted in India in 2016. The piece reflects on the growing danger of global warming and its effect on humans. (Vladimir Manzhos/Waone)
Other dominating topics are spirituality, self-exploration, the conscious and unconscious, time, astrology and ultimately the meaning of human life.
One of the drawings portrays a man magnified by a quantum physics book. Manzhos says it’s an autobiographical piece.
“I evolved from being caged to becoming absolutely free, and the path to freedom took almost 20 years,” he says in the book. “Quantum physics represents the free mind; the mindset of unlimited possibilities.”
Though Manzhos had painted walls as high as nine-floor buildings and had his work exhibited at some of the most prestigious platforms in the world, seeing his art printed is a special moment.
“To me, a book, without exaggeration is a sacred object,” he says.
Now he’s working on the second edition of the series featuring his colorful art heritage, scheduled to release this fall.
And while he is very much conscious of the meticulous process of putting together a book, Manzhos’ creativity belongs to the unconscious.
“I create real art only when I do not control the process but give myself completely to the flow,” he says.
Buy “Worlds of Phantasmagoria. Vol.1.” for $80 at Kyiv’s The Naked Room gallery (21 Reitarska St.), open daily from 11 a. m. till 8 p. m., or online.
