Kosin was born on September 26, 1948 in Kompaniivka, at the time in the Ukrainian SSR of the Soviet Union (today in the Kirovohrad Oblast of central Ukraine). In 1974 he graduated from the Kiev Polytechnic Institute. In 1988 he graduated from Kiev Institute of Journalism. In 1977 he was co-curator of avant-garde association «Rukh»(«Movement»)and exhibition, in which were artists:Mikola Tregub, Woodon Baklitsky, Alex Kostetsky, Olena Golub and others.
Since 1987 Yuri Kosin has participated in over 40 joint exhibitions in Ukraine, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Belarus, Slovakia, the United States, Poland, the United Kingdom, Israel, Lithuania and France. Many of his works are included in private collections in Switzerland, the United States, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. There are also some of Kosin’s pictures placed in The Photography Fund in Moscow, the Latvian Museum of Photography in Riga, Lancaster University, the National Historical Museum of Ukraine. For over 20 years Yuri Kosin has been engaged in organizing photo exhibitions of Ukrainian artists.
In the 1980s, Yuri Kosin created his own artistic method which was subsequently named the "transgression". From 1980-1990, “transgression” was achieved by a partial physical and chemical destruction of the emulsion.
1988 - “Interconnection”, exhibition hall of the association of artists of Ukraine, Kiev, Soviet Union1990 - “Infected Zone”, Budinok Pismennika, Kiev, Soviet Union1991 - “The world we lost”, “Kinocentr”, Moscow, Soviet Union1992 - “Chernobyl”, International art gallery, Minneapolis, USAAction Tour “Chernobyl - meeting place”, Great Britain USAPerformance “Meeting place”(“First Moment of Plague”), Andrievskiy uzviz, Kiev, Ukraine
1994 - Performance “Building model of contemporary mind” Irpin, Ukraine“Live pictures”, museum “Kiev Fortress”, Kiev, Ukraine
1995 - “Transgression”, Creative academy “Bezalel”, Jerusalem, Israel“Chernobyl 1986-1995”, House of three languages, Lumen, Belgium“Silver Light”, “Garage” gallery, Riga, Latvia“Personification”,
Latvian Museum of Photography, Riga, Latvia
1996 - “Transgression”, French cultural center, Kiev, Ukraine“Passage lesson”, De Markten Gemeenschapscentrum, Brussels, Belgium“Anabiosis”, National Historical Museum of Ukraine, Kiev, Ukraine“Emanation”, Eastern-Westerneuropean cultural center «Palais Jalta», Frankfurt, Germany
1997 - Performance “Creative advertisement”, Irpin, UkraineTransgression, Cultural Center “Tuchfabrik”, Trier, Germany
1998 - “Chernobyl”, Ministry of Environment, Mainz, Germany“Transgression”, Mill Gallery, Kalai, Britain“Transgression”, Folli gallery,
Lancaster, Britain
2000 - “Endless photography”, gallery “RA”, Kiev, UkraineAction “Art as a celebration”, Irpin, Ukraine
2001 - “Contemporary art”, “Art Club 44”, Kiev, Ukraine2002 - Gallery “Dim Mikoli”, Kiev, Ukraine“Autobiography from the third person”, gallery “Dim Mikoli”, Kiev, Ukraine
2003 - Action “Cry in the Water”, Irpin, Ukraine“Pisannitsy”, gallery Art Center on Kostelnaja, “Fotobienale” month of photography in Kiev, Ukraine“Pisannitsy”, Sovereign Duma in Moscow, Russia
2004 - Action “Cry in the Sky”, Irpin, Ukraine2005 - “Ukraine through the eyes of Ukraine”, gallery “RA-photo”, “Fotobienale” month of photography in Kiev, Ukraine“Ukraine through the eyes of Ukraine”, Ministry cabinet, Kiev, Ukraine
2006 - “Chernobyl–20”, Harvard University, Washington, New-York, USA“Borderland”, Ukrainian Institute USA, New York, USA“The Human Experience Twenty Years Later”, Woodrow Wilson Center, Washington, USA“It was always this way”, Center of Contemporary Art “Solvay”,
Kraków, Poland “Color of Hope”, Cabinet of Ministers, Kiev, Ukraine
2010 - “Reality of the “phenomenon””, gallery of the Lithuanian Photographers’ Union, Vilnius, LithuaniaParticipated in over 40 joint exhibitions in Ukraine, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Belarus, Slovakia and France.
1988 - “The Hot Trace”. The Palace of Youth. Moscow, Soviet Union.“The Hot Trace”. “Metropol” gallery. Minsk, Soviet Union.
1991 - Exhibition of the Ukrainian Artists' Union. Culture Centre. Kiev, Ukraine.1994 - “Three Perspectives”. Town Hall. Menden, Germany.“The Ukrainian Photography Today”. Catholic Academy.
Schwerte, Germany.“Photoartists of Kiev”. Museum “Kiev Fortress”. Kiev, Ukraine.“Ukrpressphoto-95”. The Ukrainian House. Kiev, Ukraine.
1995 - “Cherkassy-95”. Exhibition Hall of Ukrainian Artists' Union. Cherkasy, Ukraine.“Ukrpressphoto-95”. “Gart” gallery.
Yuzhnoukrainsk, Ukraine.“7 x 7”. Photogallery “Na uzvozi”. Kiev, Ukraine.
1996 - “Ukrpressphoto-96”. The Ukrainian House. Kiev, Ukraine.“Vision Art”.
National Art Museum of Ukraine. Kiev, Ukraine.“All Ukrainian Exhibition”. Ukrainian State Museum of Great Patriotic War History. Kiev, Ukraine.“Ukrpressphoto-96”. Photogallery “Na uzvozi”. Kiev, Ukraine.
1997 - “Blitz Exhibition”. The Artsyz Gallery”. Kiev, Ukraine.“Imprese”.
Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine.“The UFO”. The Ukrainian House. Kiev, Ukraine.“Artist League”. Photogallery “Eksar”. Kiev, Ukraine.“Without words”. Photogallery “Eksar. Kiev, Ukraine.“Mesiac Photografie”.
Bratislava, Slovakia.
2003 - “Defining Dictionary”, Kiev, Ukraine“Photo session”, Soviart gallery, Kiev, Ukraine“Position”, Lavra gallery, Kiev, Ukraine“Ukraine in focus”, “Gorod N” gallery, Kiev, Ukraine
2006 - “Once upon a time Chernobyl”, Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB), Barcelona, Spain“Chernobyl–20”, New-York, USA “Chernobyl–20”, Washington, USA “Orange moment”, Ukrainian House, Kiev, Strasburg
1997 - “Lege Artist”, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine1998 - “Paradzhanov”, photography by A. Vladimirov, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“Children of revolution”, photographed by A. Chekmenev, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“Pornography”, photography by E. Pavlov, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“Incarnation”, photography by E. Martinyuk, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“Poetical landscape”, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“Skill of image conservation”, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“Body, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“No comment” photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine“Presence effect”, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine
1999 - “Deliberate reality”, photography by O. Polisyuk, photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine2002 - “Through this air the God is looking at me”, photography by Ivan Zhdanov (Russia), photo gallery “Eksar”, Kiev, Ukraine2003 - “Position”, gallery “Lavra”, Fotobienale – 2003 “Month of photography in Kiev”, Kiev, UkraineFirst all-union slide-festival “Kharkiv-90” – First prizeNational contest of documentary pictures “Ukrpressphoto-94” – First prizeNational contest of documentary pictures “Ukrpressphoto-94” – First, third and special prizes“Photographer of the year”, annals “Academia” – first prizeBlitz-contest photo festival “Artsyz-97”Photography fund, Moscow, RussiaKunstmuseum Bonn (or Bonn Museum of Modern Art), Bonn, GermanyLatvian Museum of Photography, Riga, LatviaNational Historical Museum of UkraineHistory museum in KievLancaster University, Great BritainPrivate collections in Sweden, the Unisted States, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland and others