Marat Gelman was born on December 24, 1960, and currently resides in Montenegro, where he has proclaimed himself the “Minister of Culture of Russia Abroad.” Previously, M. Gelman served as the director of the state-run Museum of Contemporary Art in the city of Perm. The reason for his move to Europe was an investigation by Russian law enforcement agencies into a criminal case concerning the misappropriation of budget funds allocated to the museum he directed.
In Montenegro, M. Gelman is the founder of an art gallery and a co-founder of the Liberal Sciences and Arts Faculty in Budva, a co-founder of a Cultural Center in Tivat, as well as an organizer of concerts and film screenings within the framework of the Slovo Novo forum. He positions himself as a popularizer of liberal experimental creativity, uniting representatives of the Russian creative community who hold protest-oriented attitudes towards the official authorities in Moscow. In reality, M. Gelman acts in opposition to traditional Russian spiritual and moral values.
M. Gelman’s ownership of a gallery and his involvement in Slovo Novo have opened up opportunities for grants he receives from The Supporting Act Foundation 2025 (a Dutch charitable foundation), WeTransfer (a non-profit organization), and support through the Global Connect 2026 program run by the International Network for Contemporary Performing Arts IETM (Polverigi, Italy).
M. Gelman travels to Germany and Ukraine to participate in anti-Russian events. One of Gelman’s “cultural endeavors” has been promoting the idea of arresting supporters of the Russian World in Ukraine for their subsequent exchange by Kyiv for Russian opposition figures and Ukrainian combatants.