ABOUT US

Serbian Art collector Vladimir Pesic was born in London on March 3, 1969, into the family of the distinguished Yugoslav journalist and correspondent for the newspaper Politika, Dusan Pesic. From 1973 to 1978, he lived in Paris. Vladimir spent his youth and early adulthood in Moscow, where he had the opportunity to become acquainted with the works of Russian and Soviet artists and to visit renowned museums. He lived in Moscow from 1983 to 1997, where he graduated from School No. 1231 named after V.D. Polenov and, at the age of 16, enrolled in the Maurice Thorez Moscow State Linguistic University. Later, Vladimir lived in the United States, the United Kingdom, Latvia, and Serbia, where he continued acquiring works of art.

The Vladimir Pesic Collection comprises more than 330 works of painting and decorative art, icons, and unique antique ivory pieces. The core of the collection is Russian painting of the 19th–20th centuries.

Vladimir’s love of art originated in his influential and culturally minded family. The family collection began to take shape in the early 20th century, formed by his ancestors.

A turning point in the significant expansion of the collection occurred in 1988, when the first auction of paintings by the renowned auction house Sotheby’s was held in Moscow. This event further intensified Vladimir Pesic’s interest in works of art. He acquired his first painting in 1989, Calling the Slavic People to Baptism by Adolphe Charlemagne, at Art Exhibition No. 1 in Moscow, located on Smolensk Embankment. Subsequently, after attending a Russian painting auction organized by Sotheby’s in London in 1990, he began, with great passion and dedication, to search for and acquire valuable works by prominent Russian artists. In addition to paintings, he also began collecting icons and unique antique objects.

Today, Vladimir Pesic is an internationally recognized art collector, a member of the International Confederation of Collectors, Antiques and Art Dealers of Russia and CIS countries (MKKAAD), the International Confederation of Art and Antique Dealers (CINOA), which is dedicated to the preservation, protection, and promotion of antiques and works of art, and a member of the Society of Antiquaries of Serbia.

Vladimir Pesic’s activities are diverse and extend beyond mere collecting. He has provided comprehensive support for the publication of exhibition catalogues, monographs, and books in the field of fine arts, and has offered financial assistance to museums. In recognition of his contribution to the preparation of the exhibition and catalogue of the artist Vasily Timm in 2008, he was awarded the title “Friend of the Latvian National Museum of Art.”

Works from the Vladimir Pesic Collection have been exhibited at numerous exhibitions and prestigious antique salons: at the Latvian National Museum of Art (Riga, 2008), the Central House of Artists (Moscow, 2018), the heart of Moscow near the Kremlin walls at the Central Exhibition Hall Manege (Moscow, 2019), the Plyos State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve (Plyos, 2019), and in the elite exhibition space Gostiny Dvor (Moscow, 2019, 2021, 2023).

A striking example of Vladimir’s exhibition activity is the story of a single painting. The painting Whirlwind, a masterpiece by Philip Andreevich Malyavin, was brought by Vladimir Pesic from abroad to Russia. Until then, the painting had been unknown to the general public and art historians. Throughout 2019, it was exhibited three times in Russia: at the Central Exhibition Hall Manege; in the Gostiny Dvor; and at the Plyos State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve. The painting caused a sensation in artistic circles. TASS, Russia’s leading state news agency, described it as a masterpiece, while a journalist from the federal television channel Russia-24 called it “a gem, a previously unknown painting by Malyavin.” A reporter from the national television channel Russia-1, covering the exhibition opening in Plyos, gave it high praise: “Any gallery would be enriched by this masterpiece. The painting Whirlwind, the principal work of Philip Malyavin, is being exhibited in Russia for only the second time. It created a sensation at the exhibition in Moscow’s Manege, where it was called the Russian Mona Lisa.”

Most recently, part of the collection was presented in Russia in April 2023 at the 20th anniversary exhibition Art Moscow under the motto “Art Has No Borders.” Vladimir was the only foreign collector participating in the exhibition.

Since 2022, Vladimir has been actively engaged in promoting Russian art and has organized five independent exhibitions in Serbia.

From January 22 to March 13, 2022, works from the Vladimir Pesic Collection were presented at the City Museum of Vrsac (Serbia) under the title The Brilliance of Russian Painters. Due to high public interest, the exhibition was extended by two weeks. In January 2023, the City Museum of Vrsac awarded Vladimir Pesic a recognition for the most visited exhibition of 2022.

From May 12 to August 23, 2022, the exhibition The Brilliance of Russian Painters was held at the Russian House in Belgrade, presented in a renewed concept. The exhibition once again attracted considerable public interest. Initially scheduled to close on June 14, it was extended due to strong attendance and remained open until the end of August.

On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of its founding, the Russian House in Belgrade organized an exhibition from April 6 to May 31, 2023, largely based on works from the Vladimir Pesic Collection.

From June 1, 2023, to October 1, 2025, selected paintings and icons from the collection were exhibited in the exhibition hall of the Russian House in Belgrade, allowing a wide audience to engage with Russian painting and iconography.

From October 21 to November 9, 2025, the exhibition Constellation of famous Russian Artists of the 19th–20th Centuries from the Collection of Vladimir Pesic was held at the Salon of the Museum of the City of Belgrade, featuring 36 paintings and 8 icons. The exhibition became the central event of the “Days of Moscow in Serbia.” It was ceremonially opened by Sergey Cheremin, a minister of the Moscow Government. Over 8,000 visitors attended the exhibition, which received extensive coverage in Serbian, Russian, and Chinese media, with around 70 media outlets reporting on it.

From May 20 to June 30, 2026, the exhibition The Splendour of Russian Painting of the 19th–20th Centuries. Masterpieces from the Collection of Vladimir Pesic was held. The exhibition was organized jointly with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and took place at the Russian Orthodox Spiritual and Cultural Center in Paris. The exhibition catalogue includes a welcoming address by A. Yu. Meshkov, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to France. The exhibition was a unique event for Paris, as it became the first exhibition of Russian art to be held in the French capital in four years. The vernissage was attended by representatives of Paris’s cultural community, journalists, gallery owners, diplomats from embassies, and representatives of UNESCO from Russia, Serbia, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Uzbekistan, Yemen, Algeria, Honduras, Grenada, Cuba, Lebanon, Palestine, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago and other countries. According to a TASS correspondent: “Foreign guests enthusiastically discussed what they had seen, spending a long time in front of each painting.” The exhibition was conceived as a visual journey through 150 years of Russian art history. It featured 18 works representing 12 movements in Russian painting of the 19th and 20th centuries. All the paintings were presented to the public for the first time. During the exhibition, it was visited by a large number of people. As Anastasia Popova, a journalist for the television channel Russia-1, noted in her report from the exhibition’s opening: “No attempts by the modern French authorities to ban or cancel Russian culture have succeeded—the interest is enormous.” Among the guests were representatives of the Russian diaspora, French art lovers and Russophiles, French converts to Orthodoxy, members of the clergy, and tourists from different countries.

The high attendance of these exhibitions, visitor feedback, and extensive media coverage testify not only to the value of the collection but also to the thoughtful curatorial approach behind each exhibition.

For his long-term contribution to cultural development, his dedicated, selfless, and sustained work, as well as his creative contribution to the dissemination of culture, Vladimir Pesic was awarded the “Golden Badge” on December 29, 2022. The award is presented by the Cultural and Educational Society of Serbia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Serbia.

On March 16, 2023, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and Rossotrudnichestvo awarded Vladimir Pesic a Medal for strengthening peace, friendship, and cooperation. The medal was presented by Evgeny A. Primakov, head of Rossotrudnichestvo, during an official ceremony in Belgrade on April 6, 2023.

Vladimir Pesic advises on the acquisition of artworks, the formation of collections, and their global transportation. He is recognized as a professional and reliable partner. His expertise has been shaped by years of experience in Moscow and close collaboration with leading experts and restorers in the art field.

Interest in the Vladimir Pesic Collection continues to grow, as it is constantly enriched with new acquisitions. All works undergo conservation and restoration to bring them as close as possible to their original condition and to ensure their preservation for decades to come.

During 37 years of collecting, Vladimir has rescued numerous works of art from oblivion.

Vladimir Pesic sees the purpose of his work in preserving art as cultural heritage and making it accessible to contemporary audiences and future generations, as “the most significant thing we leave behind is art”. His primary goal is to establish a museum of Russian art outside of Russia.

Vladimir Pesic

Vladimir Pesic at the fair “Art Moscow” in the elite exhibition centre Gostiny Dvor, Moscow, April 19, 2023.

Vladimir Pesic was awarded the Medal for Strengthening Peace, Friendship and Cooperation by Rossotrudnichestvo (The Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States, Compatriots Living Abroad, and International Humanitarian Cooperation).