Biography

SON PARCOURS : Dimitri Tolstoï

Issu d’une famille aristocratique russe et fils du Comte Serge Tolstoï, Dimitri Tolstoï a grandi dans un environnement artistique et littéraire florissant.

Il découvre très tôt sa vocation de photographe, héritée de son arrière-grand-mère Sofia Andreevna Tolstoï. Avec son arrière grand-père, il partage une vision universelle de l’art.

À seulement 14 ans, il réalise des portraits et des natures mortes dans sa chambre, devenue son premier studio photo, et effectue les tirages dans sa salle de bains, lui servant de laboratoire noir et blanc.

Après son passage sous les drapeaux, à l’âge de 21 ans, il décide de faire de sa passion un métier. La qualité de son travail et sa motivation lui permettent de rejoindre, en tant que premier assistant, l’équipe d’un grand photographe publicitaire français.

Cinq ans plus tard, il crée son premier studio de prises de vues et commence à réaliser lui-même des campagnes publicitaires.

Démontrant son éclectisme, mais également son talent, il travaille pour de célèbres marques internationales : Perrier, Air France, Pioneer, Céline, Chanel, Kenzo, Nivea, Guerlain, Dior, Dom Pérignon, Le Bon marché, Kusmi Tea…

Certaines de ses campagnes seront récompensées par le Prix des Directeurs Artistiques.

SES EXPOSITIONS

Capable de se réinventer en permanence, Dimitri Tolstoï est un artiste qui ose. Il n’hésite d’ailleurs pas à mélanger peinture et photographie.

Son travail hybride est l’illustration de la frontière ténue entre son monde professionnel et sa création artistique.

2022 — Gare de l’Est et Gare Montparnasse:Les Territoires de l’Industrie
2019 — Hôtel de l’Industrie: Le Grand Plongeon
2018 — Espace Commines: Landescapes
2017 — Turbulance & Renaissance
2016 — Fondation d’entreprise VALGO – « De l’industrie à l’art, un raffinage subtil… », Mars, Maison de l’industrie – Paris
2015-2016 — Galerie Jacquet Droz, « Le barbier de Tolstoï »
2014 — Kusmitchoff Café Paris : Un air de Russie
2014 — Moscow Art Fair, Russie
2014 — Galerie Sandy Toupenet, Paris
2013 — Galerie Jacquet Droz, Paris
2012 — Le Nomad’s Molitor, Paris
2012 — Galerie Caplain Matignon : Molitor, Paris
2012 — Galerie Grand E’terna, Paris
2011 — Art Paris, Grand Palais
2010 — NK Art Galerie, Paris
2009 — LM Galerie, Paris
2009 — Berluti, Paris
2008 — Parinaud-Doupontreué-Ferrari, Paris
2008 — Louis Alexander Galerie, Porto Cervo
2007 — Art Rouge Gallery, Miami


Son of the Russian aristocrat Count Serge Tolstoy, Dimitri grew up steeped in a flourishing artistic and literary environment.

Early on, he discovered his love and gift for photography, which he inherited from his great grandmother Sophia Andreevna. With his great grandfather, he shared the same universal vision of the arts.

By age 14 he was already experimenting with portraits and still life shots in his bedroom, which he had converted into a studio so he could develop his own black and white photographs right in his bathroom.

At age 21, after completing his military duty, he decided to make his passion his profession. The quality of his work and his incomparable drive landed him a job as the right-hand man for one of France’s most prominent advertising photographers of the day.

Five years later, he opened his own studio and began shooting advertising campaigns independently. His skills as well as his adaptability earned him the trust of many key clients, including some of the world’s leading international brands: Perrier, Air France, Pioneer, Céline, Chanel, Kenzo, Nivea, Guerlain, Dior, Dom Perignon, Le Bon Marché, Kusmi Tea….

Some of his campaigns even won the prestigious Art Director’s Award.

HIS EXHIBITS

Able to constantly reinvent himself, Tolstoy is a daring artist. In fact, he even blurs the lines between photography and painting.

His hybrid style illustrates the brilliant combination of his professional world and his creative expression.

2022 — Gare de l’Est et Gare Montparnasse:Les Territoires de l’Industrie
2019 — Hôtel de l’Industrie: Le Grand Plongeon
2018 — Espace Commines: Landescapes
2017 — Turbulance & Renaissance
2016 — Founding of VALGO – “From industry to art, a subtle refinement”. March, Maison de l’Industrie, Paris
2015-2016 — Galerie Jacquet Droz, “Tolstoy’s Beards”
2014 — Kusmitchoff Café Paris : Un air de Russie
2014 — Moscow Art Fair, Russie
2014 — Galerie Sandy Toupenet, Paris
2013 — Galerie Jacquet Droz, Paris
2012 — Le Nomad’s Molitor, Paris
2012 — Galerie Caplain Matignon : Molitor, Paris
2012 — Galerie Grand E’terna, Paris
2011 — Art Paris, Grand Palais
2010 — NK Art Galerie, Paris
2009 — LM Galerie, Paris
2009 — Berluti, Paris
2008 — Parinaud-Doupontreué-Ferrari, Paris
2008 — Louis Alexander Galerie, Porto Cervo
2007 — Art Rouge Gallery, Miami

Dimitri Tolstoy is an artist who found his calling at a very early age. The son of Count Serge Tolstoy, his childhood was steeped in the influential art and literature of the Russian aristocracy.

He inherited his passion for photography from his great-grandmother, Sofia Andreevna Tolstoy (the wife of the famous author Leo Tolstoy).

By the age of 14, Dimitri had already developed a deep interest and a natural gift for photography. His favorite past time was taking portraits of his family members and still life shots of various objects in his bedroom, which had become his first studio, with the nearby bathroom as his first laboratory for developing black and white film.

At the age of 21, after earning his Baccalaureate degree from Janson de Sailly high school in the Parisian suburb of Neuilly and completing his military duty with the armed forces, he decided to convert his passion into his profession. The quality of his work and level of dedication to perfection earned him a position as first assistant to a major French advertising agency’s photo department.

When he turned 26, he opened his own studio and began working free-lance on various ad campaigns for leading global brands such as Perrier, Renault, Peugeot, Air France, Pioneer, Céline, Baccarat, Longchamp, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Kenzo, Lancaster, Nivea, Guerlain, Dom Pérignon, Chaumet, and Le Bon Marché). The diverse array of approaches and subject matter handled during this time helped to strength the highly eclectic style which has always characterized his work and continues to set him apart from other artists in this field. Many of his campaigns received industry recognition, including the Art Director’s Award.

Dimistry’s work has also been features in several exhibitions:

2007 — Art Rouge Gallery, Miami, USA
2008 — Louis Alexander Galerie, Porto Cervo, Italy
2008 — Parinaud-Doupontreué-Ferrari, Paris, France
2009 — Berluti, Paris, France
2009 — LM Galerie, Paris, France
2010 — NK Art Galerie, Paris, France
2011 — Art Paris, Grand Palais, Paris, France
2012 — Galerie Grand E’terna, Paris, France
2012 — Le Nomad, benefit for the Plein Soleil charity organization, Paris, France

Dimitri is an artist in constant evolution, reinventing his medium at every opportunity. He dares to combine painting with photography, blurring the lines between his profession and need for creative expression. His work is becoming more and more of a hybrid to be explored and savored.