Kalashnikovv Gallery was founded in 2013 in direct response to the traditional white cube gallery system by envisioning an alternative operational model for the visual arts. It is administered and curated by two of Johannesburg's deep-rooted cultural instigators, M.J Turpin and Matthew Dean Dowdle who prioritize a collaborative exchange in working with the artists they partner with.

Kalashnikovv currently represents a range of artists with emerging to established careers. The gallery and its staff work in conversation with these artists to build networks, exposure and foster personal growth through exhibitions, residencies and exchanges. The gallery is both a commercial art space as well as a project space for experimentation with an ethos of socio-political engagement and accessibility. This sentiment operates at all levels of the gallery structure in order to facilitate new benchmarks of value for artists, collectors and visitors from within, and outside of, the existing art ecosystem.

Kalashnikovv is a South African based gallery that is constantly expanding its scope to partner with creators and communities across the world. These interactions with local and international networks continually help to deconstruct and interrogate the idea of what a contemporary art platform can be in order to facilitate the changing role of art in modern society.