alex sher
Water fervently guards itself against air and light. Whenever these two sneak into its dark abyss, the water mercilessly devours them. Yet water's power gives in to the human beauty, releasing the light and air it held captive. When a weightless beauty wrapped in light and air bubbles shines before my camera - the camera takes pictures on its own. I am just holding my breath.
the camera takes pictures on its own. I am just holding my breath.
Alex Sher is an award-winning American underwater fine art photographer whose technical innovations and admiration of feminine sensuality have heralded him to worldwide acclaim.
Sher was born in Ukraine in 1962 and started taking photographs at the age of twelve. He graduated from Kyiv University in 1984. Two years later, he volunteered as medical personnel to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster recovery. When asked about that time, he says "having no clue how much radiation you are getting makes you appreciate every breath - pretty much what you feel underwater." Sher started showing his photographs in the early nineties; however, he considered himself an amateur until his work was stolen from an exhibition in Kyiv. In 1995, Sher immigrated to the US with his family and currently resides in Los Angeles.
Sher’s underwater photographs emerged in 2011 and were exhibited in 2015 in Paris at the Louvre Museum, and later by museums of London, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and other major cities. Sher's first personal photo exhibition was held in 2016 in Los Angeles by the Bruce Lurie Gallery. Since then, he has had six exclusive exhibitions, been featured in numerous group exhibitions, and has participated in major US art fairs.
His most recent pieces showcase minimalism and abstraction with bright colors through a quiet, eye-catchy, and charming combination of figurative and abstract art. Sher's first photo book 'Mermaids' was published in 2018. Alex Sher is being represented by the Touchon Gallery since 2019.
exhibitions
2021 LA Art Show, Los Angeles, CA
2019 Touchon Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2019 Annenberg Space for Photography Water, Los Angeles, CA
2019 Artexpo, New York, NY
2019 Touchon Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2019 Gallery NI, San Diego, CA
2019 Lark Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2018 Natural History Museum, London, UK
2018 Natural History Museum, New York, NY
2018 Natural History Museum, Los Angeles, CA
2018 Central House of Artist, Moscow, Russia
2017 Avalon Hall, Los Angeles, CA
2017 Larisa Rubijevsky, Los Angeles, CA
2016 Bruce Lurie Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2016 Ken Blackford, Los Angeles, CA
2015 Louvre, Paris, France
2013 On The Edge, San Francisco, CA
2012 Gallery Godo, Los Angeles, CA
magazine publications
2021 – FRAMES Magazine, US
2021 – Lens Magazine, US
2021 – Artillery, US
2021 – Model Society Academy Magazine, US
2021 – The NUDE Magazine, US
2021 – Chiiz Magazine, US
2021 – The Style Researcher, Italy
2021 – Moevir Magazine, France
2021 – Contemporary Art Curator Magazine, US
2021 – Spotlight Magazine, US
2019 – Spotlight Magazine, US
2017 – Wildlife Photographer of the Year
2016 – Best of Photography
2015 – The Exposure Award
2016 – Ocean 4 Future, Italy
2016 – Scuba Diving Magazine, US