maria
lezhnina
Maria Lezhnina is an artist and architect born in Kazan and based in Taipei. Her practice—spanning visual arts, spatial research, and public art—explores how light, colour, materials, and atmospheric conditions shape human perception of the environment.
Since 2017, her practice has gradually evolved from early investigations of light, materiality, and perception into large-scale installations and permanent interventions in public space.
Drawing on her architectural background, she often translates scientific concepts into poetic spatial experiences. Through this, her works engage directly with the physical conditions of their surroundings: for example, her public art installations can harness thermodynamic principles, absorbing and storing solar energy during the day to emit light at night, while her digital installations can change in appearance in response to real-time environmental data, such as online weather forecasts.
She holds a Master of Arts in Urban Vision and Architectural Design from Domus Academy and a Master of Architecture from KSUAE.
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selected exhibitions & happenings:
2026 Memory of Those Sunny Days public art project opening, National Chengchi University (NCCU), Taipei; with performance directed
by choreographer Mauro Sacchi and soundscape
by DJ Yi-Chen Lin - event
2024 Zhongshan Road, The Studio - solo exhibition
2023 Forms of Arrangement 佈局, IT Park, Taipei - solo exhibition
2023 Marble is a state of matter, Jiaruen, Taipei - solo exhibition
2022 The 31st Anniversary Group Exhibition -
Encounter, light infiltrates slowly into the cornea, Galerie Pierre, Taichung - group exhibition
2021 Artist in Residency Program Exhibition, Taitung Art Museum, Taitung
2021 Something about Fuzhong, curated by Xue Xue Foundation - group exhibition
2020 Starry Winter Night, 嘉俬房 & other Art things, Taipei - group exhibition
2020 戀戀仲夏 Summer of love at 嘉俬房 & other Art things, Taipei - solo exhibition
2020 36 hours of artist`s cinemas, 台北當代藝術中心 Taipei Contemporary Art Center, Taipei - screening
2020 茶香流動, Xinfangchun Tea Shop Dadaocheng, Taipei - installation
2020《氣候． 無名》瑪莉．利茲尼娜攝影發表 (已額滿) curated by FLOW at Understory, Taipei - solo exhibition
2020 曠野 Through the wildness, Jing Lü Art Gallery, Taipei - group exhibition
2019 人的星球 The Planet of Human, Lishui International Photography Festival, Art 35, Lishui - group exhibition
2019 Taipei Art Book Fair, Taipei - fair
2019 Contemporary Photography & Video Art Salon, Auction Center, Taipei - group exhibition
2019 I Never Read Basel, Kaserne, Basel, as part of parallel program at Art Basel - fair
2019 臺灣文博會 On the Move, Taiwan Creative Expo, Taipei - key visuals
2018 台北製造 / Made in Taipei, Onfoto Gallery, Taipei - group exhibition
2018 In Balance - Taiwan, Hua Nan Commercial Bank Corporate Plaza Lobby, Taipei - group exhibition
2018 In Balance - Italy, Torre di Ligny, Trapani / Palazzo Borromeo, Cesano Maderno - group exhibition
2018 草山氛—土與空氣的詩 / Air&Clay, URS27M, Taipei - solo exhibition
2018 The City is Tapestry, Umkt - JUT Foundation for the Arts and Architecture, Taipei - group exhibition
2017 Unknown Asia photography exhibition, DMO Arts gallery, Osaka - group exhibition
2017 アンノウン・アジアの写真 Unknown Asia Art Exchange, Herbis Hall, Osaka - fair
2017 Independent Tokyo, Hulic Hall, Tokyo - fair
2017 Wonderfotoday Awards 2017 exhibition, G.Gallery, Taipei - group exhibition
2017 Wonderfotoday, Huashan 1914 Creative Park, Taipei - fair
public art:
2026 Timeless Weight of Beauty, National Palace Museum, Chiayi (together with Alessandro Martinelli) - ongoing
2026 Memory of Those Sunny Days (那些陽光明媚的記憶), National Chengchi University, Taipei
2023 Aurora Ice Rink, Noke Mall, Taipei (together with Bias Architects)
2022 Temple Square, Keelung (together with Bias Architects)
awards and grants:
2019 Pahparn Sirima Chaipreechawit Award, Wonderfotoday, Taipei
2017 Ryoko Kodo Award, Independent Tokyo, Tokyo
2017 Ishibashi Koki Award, Independent Tokyo, Tokyo
2017 Yoshihiro Taniguchi Award, Wonderfotoday, Taipei
2011 Grant of President of Tatarstan Republic, Kazan
2010 Grant of Kazan Mayor in the field of Architecture, Kazan
residency:
2023 California1Taiwan, Yilan
2021 Taitung Art Museum, Taitung
2019 Lishui Artist Village residency, Art35 Hotel, Zhejiang Province
publications:
2019 Islands / In Balance, List Lab, Barcelona - exhibition catalog
2018 Photography is Art Magazine 4, Hong Kong - review
2018 The City is Tapestry, JUT Foundation U-mrkt, Taipei - exhibition catalog
2017 Unknown Asia Photography, DMO Arts, Osaka - exhibition catalog
teaching experience:
2026 Shih Chien University, Taipei
2019-2020 Huafan University, Taipei
education:
2012 Domus Academy, Master of Arts in Urban Vision and Architectural Design, Milan
2011 Kazan State University of Architecture and Engineering, Specialist degree in Architecture
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