-- Following years of exhibitions and artistic development across the United States and Europe, internationally trained artist Elena Von Kohn will present her newest body of work this June in Paris with L’Instant du Rêve (“The Moment of the Dream”), opening June 10, 2026, at Galerie Joseph.
Photo Courtesy of Elena Von Kohn
Born in Leipzig, Germany, and classically trained in Moscow, Von Kohn has built an international artistic career shaped by European academic tradition, psychological symbolism, and decades of work across multiple continents. Now based in Scottsdale, Arizona; San Diego, California; and Europe, she has become known for her enigmatic surrealist paintings that merge classical figurative precision with emotionally charged contemporary narratives.
Her upcoming Paris exhibition represents a defining moment in a career that has evolved steadily through exhibitions, private collections, institutional recognition, and growing international attention.
“This exhibition feels deeply connected to where my artistic journey first began,” Von Kohn said. “There is something meaningful about bringing this work back to Europe after so many years of artistic growth abroad.”
Recognized early for her artistic ability, Von Kohn trained within the rigorous Russian academic system before relocating to the United States in the mid-1990s. Over the following decades, she developed a distinctive visual language centered on femininity, emotional tension, vulnerability, transformation, and the psychological complexity of human presence.
Unlike much contemporary figurative painting focused on immediacy or trend, Von Kohn’s work embraces atmosphere, ambiguity, and sustained emotional resonance. Her compositions often place female figures within cinematic, dreamlike environments that resist singular interpretation while maintaining strong technical realism.
In 2023, one of Von Kohn’s monumental oil paintings achieved a record auction result at Wright Auction House in Chicago, drawing increased attention from collectors and galleries ahead of her Paris exhibition. Her works are held in museum, institutional, and private collections in both the United States and Europe, and have been featured in publications including Forbes Australia, American Art Collector, and Luxury Lifestyle Magazine.
The Paris exhibition will feature works from her ongoing series Dancing with Gravity, exploring surrender, memory, identity, and feminine psychological space through large-scale figurative surrealism.
“Painting, for me, is about creating a presence that remains with the viewer,” Von Kohn said. “I want the work to stay emotionally unresolved in a way that continues unfolding over time.”
At a moment when much contemporary art increasingly favors speed and spectacle, Von Kohn’s paintings move toward stillness, atmosphere, and emotional depth — qualities that continue to distinguish her evolving body of work internationally.
L’Instant du Rêve opens June 10, 2026, at Galerie Joseph in Paris.
Additional information about Elena Von Kohn and her work is available at www.elenavonkohn.com.
About
Elena Von Kohn is a contemporary figurative surrealist artist born in Leipzig, Germany, and academically trained in Moscow, Russia. Von Kohn works in a style she defines as Enigmatic Surrealism, producing large-format oil paintings held in public, corporate, and private collections across the United States and internationally. Her work has been exhibited across North America and Europe, and her Paris exhibition, L'Instant du Rêve, opens June 10, 2026.
Contact Info:
Name: Aaron Kerscher
Email: Send Email
Organization: Art Fortune
Address: Scottsdale, AZ 85255, United States
Website: https://www.artfortune.com/
Release ID: 89191642
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