Maksym Galyuk
- Editor at Titan Contemporary Publishing
- Nov 15
- 3 min read
Maksym Galyuk is a portrait / street photographer and filmmaker who has exhibited mostly in New York and has been published extensively internationally. Recent exhibitions in New York include Greenpoint Gallery, Janes Studios, Art Grove, LIC A / Plaxa Gallery and SxSE Photo Gallery in Molena, Georgia. Maksym has been published by fashion and photo magazines in the United States, Europe, and Canada including Artells, 17:23, Imirage Magazine, Stylé Cruze, London Runway, Sainteight, Looplite, Blush, Charisma, Photohouse Magazine, Beautica Magazine, UA Models Magazine, Selin, Malvie, Eclair, Penida, Ellas, Artego, Quadro, and MOB.
The photography and films by Maksym Galyuk focus on an urban aesthetic as figurative modeled portraiture becomes captured amongst the gritty and glamorous streets of New York. From figures in black leather trenchcoats to women in tight outfits, the costume choice for each model against the backdrop of the streets reflect specific conceptual notions, such as expressions of nihilism, hipness, and even futurism. From walks in monumental parks to railway crosswalks with scenic skylines of skyscrapers to motions of train cars speeding past a woman in a subway, the actors contained in Maksym Galyuk’s art portray the spirit of the city and the chaotic yet precise infrastructure.
With clever use of costume props, architecture, and vehicles, Maksym Galyuk creates urban mythological characters such as a man dressed in aviation goggles and a black suit amidst backdrops of trees, soccer fields, and sparked screens. Other characters revel in slim outfits and dresses holding roses among vintage cars, aged drinking bars, dilapidated urban ruins, or classic signs from previous eras. Maksym’s actors convey a narrative based on reflecting on the changing nature of the city as well as the varying environments contained within New York, from futuristic skyscrapers along a caged skywalk or the local vintage shops and destroyed ruins of the inner city. These stories portray both urban blight and glory simultaneously, revealing the complexity in emotions the spirit of the city invokes upon residents and passersbys alike.
Gnossienne (pictured above) is one of the few films by Maksym Galyuk, shot entirely in black and white amidst a classical piano score. The film appears similar to moving photography stills rather than typical cinematography, due to the careful composition of each frame. A woman within the film stands along a subway, stares into the camera, then becomes blurred along the screeching of a runaway train. She then walks into a concrete park with a monument in her black drenchcoat and stiletto boots until an enormous flock of pigeons fly from the ground to escape. The actor walks along a skywalk among ominous skyscrapers until boarding a sea ferry. She reveals the narrative of the city in her stark outfit, black and white compositions with high contrast followed by varying environments and modes of transport which reflect sustaining motion into the city.
A dynamic, mysterious photographer and filmmaker, Maksym Galyuk transports us through his crafted realms within his urban environments which convey a variety of emotions from melancholy to serenity. His carefully choreographed actors reveal the city’s character through photography rich in texture and contrast. Through the prism of improvised costume choices, followed by strategic locations which communicate senses of decay, nostalgia, and futuristic tendencies, Maksym expresses how urban environments, particularly New York, alter our sensory experiences and psychological states due to their imposing infrastructure and variation of blighted landscapes.
