Contemporary art, no snobbery

What it is

A TikTok by an art historian who goes simply by Nyura. The focus is contemporary art, and not just the big headline names but artists who rarely get covered in Russian. Korean painter Moka Lee, whose portraits look like random social media snapshots. Do Ho Suh and his work about how the spaces we live in hold our personal history. Matsuoka, who paints the strange state between sleeping and waking. Even the paintings and sculptures of rapper Yung Lean, which he barely showed for almost a decade. Alongside these are reflective pieces like "What is art?" with a nod to Duchamp. The videos are in Russian.

Why we picked it

Contemporary art is usually explained either too academically or with a smirk. This account takes a third route: calmly telling you what the artist is doing and why it might get to you. The clips are short, but each one leaves you with a thought to chew on. It also works as a discovery list: in one video she simply names the Instagram profiles of artists she likes, which is a ready-made trail to follow.

The audience is still small, around two thousand followers, yet some videos have picked up hundreds of thousands of likes. New posts come out roughly weekly.

Where to start

• The Do Ho Suh video — home, memory and how places keep our past selves.
• The one on Moka Lee's portraits that look like social media shots.
• "What is art?" — a good way in if you're a skeptic.
• The piece on Yung Lean's paintings, a surprise if you only know his music.
• Her list of artist profiles for finding new names.

Who it's for

Russian speakers who visit contemporary art museums and want to get more out of them. Skeptics willing to give contemporary art one more chance. Anyone hunting for fresh artists to follow.

Quick answers

What language is it in? Russian, with artists' names given in the original.

Is it only contemporary art? Mostly, with the occasional historical story.

Where else can I find her? Her profile points to the Instagram account nyurapop.