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'''Alyona Voynova''' (also '''Aljona Woinowa'''; '''Elena Voinova'''; born 1975 in Kuibyshev (now Samara), USSR) is a sand animation artist. Since 2015, she has been based in Berlin.
== Early life and education ==
Voynova was born in 1975 in Kuibyshev (now Samara), Soviet Union. She studied at the Samara Art School and at the Faculty of Fine Arts and Decorative and Applied Arts of the Samara State Pedagogical University. From 1998 to 2007, she worked as an artist, photographer, and designer.
She began working with sand animation as an independent art form in 2006. Her first performances took place in Samara, including at the Samara State Philharmonic Hall. From 2007, she developed an active touring career across Russia, and in 2009 she began performing internationally.
== Artistic style and technique ==
Voynova specializes in sand animation, combining visual art with music and live stage performance. Her performances are structured as real-time visual narratives created on a backlit table and projected onto a screen or architectural surfaces.
She works both in solo performances and in collaboration with musicians and orchestras. In her projects, sand animation functions either as an independent stage form or as a visual accompaniment to musical compositions.
Since 2010, she has developed a technique for fixing sand to create static artworks. In addition to her stage work, she also works as an illustrator.
Her sand drawings were featured in a scientific publication in the ''European Physical Journal E'' as examples in research on granular materials.https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epje/i2017-11534-4
== Selected projects and performances ==
In 2010, Voynova performed at the ''Tollwood Winter Festival'' in Munich.https://www.exklusiv-muenchen.de/news/tollwood-winterfestival-2010-6776https://www.hallo-muenchen.de/gewinnspiele/tollwood-startet-heute-2418555.html
On 15 September 2010, she appeared at the ''Goldene Henne'' media awards ceremony at the Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin.
In 2010, she participated in a project by ''Cirque du Soleil'' in France.
In June 2011, she created a sand animation based on the Loreley legend with the choir ''Mainzer Hofsänger'' at the Loreley rock near Sankt Goar as part of the television production ''Musikanten Dampfer''.https://www.yumpu.com/de/document/view/21608079/21-woche-rbb-presseservice-startseite
In 2012, she performed at the opening of the German House in London during the Summer Olympics, together with acrobats.https://viola.bz/sand-animated-art-by-alyona-voynova/
In 2014, she presented a sand show about the history of Hamburg, which was subsequently performed multiple times.https://www.eurobus.de/images/zeitung/EB_teil2_Staedtereise_0414_29-36_kleiner.pdf
In 2015, her sand show ''Berlin – große Stadt mit großer Geschichte'' premiered at the Admiralspalast in Berlin.
In 2016, she developed and performed the programme ''Ich bin ein Berliner!'', which ran in a theatre near Gendarmenmarkt until July 2017.
In 2016, she took part in the ''Berlin Leuchtet'' festival, projecting sand animation onto the Brandenburg Gate and the Galeria Kaufhof building at Alexanderplatz.https://www.maz-online.de/Lokales/Projektionen-fuer-ein-Lichtkonzept
In 2017, she participated in the cultural programme of the German Protestant ''Kirchentag'' in Berlin and in the ''Potsdam Light Spectacle'', where her animation was projected onto Potsdam Central Station.https://www.ekkw.de/kirchentag-startet-unter-dem-motto-du-siehst-michhttps://lankwitz-horns.de/2018/05/17/feeling-groovy-in-lankwitz/https://www.pnn.de/potsdam/erleuchtet-potsdamer-lichtspektakel-strahlende-ideen/21310922.html
In 2017, she contributed to a London production of Pietro Mascagni's opera ''Cavalleria rusticana''.
In 2018, she served as a jury member at a sand art festival in China.https://news.sina.com.cn/o/2018-07-31/doc-ihhacrcc8493478.shtmlhttps://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_2301773
In 2019, she created live sand animation for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 (''Pastoral'') during the ''Beethoven Marathon 2019'' with the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn conducted by Dirk Kaftan.https://opernmagazin.de/glanzleistung-des-beethoven-orchesters-alle-neun-sinfonien-an-einem-tag/https://www.beethoven-orchester.de/wp-content/uploads/AB_Freitag4_AlleNeune_neu_web.pdf
In 2019, she participated in a London production of ''The Nutcracker'', combining ballet, live music, narration, and sand animation.https://fabukmagazine.com/song-of-the-swans/https://russianinlondon.com/news/events/215-song-of-the-swans.html
In 2024, her sand animation featured in the London premiere of ''The Little Prince''; an interview with the artist was published in connection with the production.https://afisha.london/en/2024/04/11/the-dance-of-hands-and-magic-of-images-sand-show-comes-to-london/
Her performances have accompanied concerts with orchestras such as the Moscow Soloists, Moscow Virtuosi, Bergische Symphoniker, Beethoven Orchestra Bonn, and the Philharmonic Orchestra of the City of Trier.https://5vier.de/auf-dem-jahrmarkt-2-familienkonzert-im-theater-trier-mit-sandkuenstlerin-alyona-voynova-244784.htmlhttps://www.rga.de/lokales/bergische-kultur/sandbilder-entstehen-musik-4081600.amp.html
== Television appearances ==
Voynova has appeared on television programmes in Germany, Switzerland, France, and Russia, including:
* ''TV total'' with Stefan Raab (ProSieben)https://www.myspass.de/shows/tvshows/tv-total/Aljona-Voynova-Act--/1792/
* ''Frühstücksfernsehen'' (Sat.1)https://www.sat1.de/tv/fruehstuecksfernsehen/video/1-ganz-schoen-sandig-clip
* programmes hosted by Johannes B. Kernerhttps://www.sat1.de/videos/1-ein-balletttanz-auf-der-glasscheibe-clip
* ''Benissimo'' (SRF, Switzerland)https://www.srf.ch/play/tv/benissimo/video/aljona-voynova?id=67bc2d5c-dfb4-42fb-abf9-4e16c6391ed7
* ''Le Plus Grand Cabaret du Monde'' (France 2, hosted by Patrick Sébastien)https://www.purepeople.com/media/exclusif-aljona-voynova-peinture-sur_m3708925
== Awards ==
Winner of the ''Krone der Volksmusik'' (2011, Crossover category).https://web.archive.org/web/20161106010112/http://www.mdr.de/presse/mdr-im-ersten/artikel105194.html
== Publications ==
''Sand painting'' (2013, 2014, 2019), published in Russian and Chinese.
== References ==
== Early life and education ==
Voynova was born in 1975 in Kuibyshev (now Samara), Soviet Union. She studied at the Samara Art School and at the Faculty of Fine Arts and Decorative and Applied Arts of the Samara State Pedagogical University. From 1998 to 2007, she worked as an artist, photographer, and designer.
She began working with sand animation as an independent art form in 2006. Her first performances took place in Samara, including at the Samara State Philharmonic Hall. From 2007, she developed an active touring career across Russia, and in 2009 she began performing internationally.
== Artistic style and technique ==
Voynova specializes in sand animation, combining visual art with music and live stage performance. Her performances are structured as real-time visual narratives created on a backlit table and projected onto a screen or architectural surfaces.
She works both in solo performances and in collaboration with musicians and orchestras. In her projects, sand animation functions either as an independent stage form or as a visual accompaniment to musical compositions.
Since 2010, she has developed a technique for fixing sand to create static artworks. In addition to her stage work, she also works as an illustrator.
Her sand drawings were featured in a scientific publication in the ''European Physical Journal E'' as examples in research on granular materials.https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epje/i2017-11534-4
== Selected projects and performances ==
In 2010, Voynova performed at the ''Tollwood Winter Festival'' in Munich.https://www.exklusiv-muenchen.de/news/tollwood-winterfestival-2010-6776https://www.hallo-muenchen.de/gewinnspiele/tollwood-startet-heute-2418555.html
On 15 September 2010, she appeared at the ''Goldene Henne'' media awards ceremony at the Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin.
In 2010, she participated in a project by ''Cirque du Soleil'' in France.
In June 2011, she created a sand animation based on the Loreley legend with the choir ''Mainzer Hofsänger'' at the Loreley rock near Sankt Goar as part of the television production ''Musikanten Dampfer''.https://www.yumpu.com/de/document/view/21608079/21-woche-rbb-presseservice-startseite
In 2012, she performed at the opening of the German House in London during the Summer Olympics, together with acrobats.https://viola.bz/sand-animated-art-by-alyona-voynova/
In 2014, she presented a sand show about the history of Hamburg, which was subsequently performed multiple times.https://www.eurobus.de/images/zeitung/EB_teil2_Staedtereise_0414_29-36_kleiner.pdf
In 2015, her sand show ''Berlin – große Stadt mit großer Geschichte'' premiered at the Admiralspalast in Berlin.
In 2016, she developed and performed the programme ''Ich bin ein Berliner!'', which ran in a theatre near Gendarmenmarkt until July 2017.
In 2016, she took part in the ''Berlin Leuchtet'' festival, projecting sand animation onto the Brandenburg Gate and the Galeria Kaufhof building at Alexanderplatz.https://www.maz-online.de/Lokales/Projektionen-fuer-ein-Lichtkonzept
In 2017, she participated in the cultural programme of the German Protestant ''Kirchentag'' in Berlin and in the ''Potsdam Light Spectacle'', where her animation was projected onto Potsdam Central Station.https://www.ekkw.de/kirchentag-startet-unter-dem-motto-du-siehst-michhttps://lankwitz-horns.de/2018/05/17/feeling-groovy-in-lankwitz/https://www.pnn.de/potsdam/erleuchtet-potsdamer-lichtspektakel-strahlende-ideen/21310922.html
In 2017, she contributed to a London production of Pietro Mascagni's opera ''Cavalleria rusticana''.
In 2018, she served as a jury member at a sand art festival in China.https://news.sina.com.cn/o/2018-07-31/doc-ihhacrcc8493478.shtmlhttps://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_2301773
In 2019, she created live sand animation for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 (''Pastoral'') during the ''Beethoven Marathon 2019'' with the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn conducted by Dirk Kaftan.https://opernmagazin.de/glanzleistung-des-beethoven-orchesters-alle-neun-sinfonien-an-einem-tag/https://www.beethoven-orchester.de/wp-content/uploads/AB_Freitag4_AlleNeune_neu_web.pdf
In 2019, she participated in a London production of ''The Nutcracker'', combining ballet, live music, narration, and sand animation.https://fabukmagazine.com/song-of-the-swans/https://russianinlondon.com/news/events/215-song-of-the-swans.html
In 2024, her sand animation featured in the London premiere of ''The Little Prince''; an interview with the artist was published in connection with the production.https://afisha.london/en/2024/04/11/the-dance-of-hands-and-magic-of-images-sand-show-comes-to-london/
Her performances have accompanied concerts with orchestras such as the Moscow Soloists, Moscow Virtuosi, Bergische Symphoniker, Beethoven Orchestra Bonn, and the Philharmonic Orchestra of the City of Trier.https://5vier.de/auf-dem-jahrmarkt-2-familienkonzert-im-theater-trier-mit-sandkuenstlerin-alyona-voynova-244784.htmlhttps://www.rga.de/lokales/bergische-kultur/sandbilder-entstehen-musik-4081600.amp.html
== Television appearances ==
Voynova has appeared on television programmes in Germany, Switzerland, France, and Russia, including:
* ''TV total'' with Stefan Raab (ProSieben)https://www.myspass.de/shows/tvshows/tv-total/Aljona-Voynova-Act--/1792/
* ''Frühstücksfernsehen'' (Sat.1)https://www.sat1.de/tv/fruehstuecksfernsehen/video/1-ganz-schoen-sandig-clip
* programmes hosted by Johannes B. Kernerhttps://www.sat1.de/videos/1-ein-balletttanz-auf-der-glasscheibe-clip
* ''Benissimo'' (SRF, Switzerland)https://www.srf.ch/play/tv/benissimo/video/aljona-voynova?id=67bc2d5c-dfb4-42fb-abf9-4e16c6391ed7
* ''Le Plus Grand Cabaret du Monde'' (France 2, hosted by Patrick Sébastien)https://www.purepeople.com/media/exclusif-aljona-voynova-peinture-sur_m3708925
== Awards ==
Winner of the ''Krone der Volksmusik'' (2011, Crossover category).https://web.archive.org/web/20161106010112/http://www.mdr.de/presse/mdr-im-ersten/artikel105194.html
== Publications ==
''Sand painting'' (2013, 2014, 2019), published in Russian and Chinese.
== References ==
