Agony, 2024, paint, paper, canvas, screws, metal grid, acrylic, fixatives, wood, 100 x 139 x 18 cm.
Untitled (Fairy tale), 2024, recycled newspapers,canvas, paint, screws, metal grid, cardboard, acrylic, fixatives, wood, 104 x 174 x 15 cm.
● What is the work made of?
My works are made of recycled newspapers, canvas, paint, screws, metal grid, cardboard, acrylic, fixatives, wood
● How has it been made? What processes/actions have been used?
The work "Fairy Tale" was assembled through a long process. Each of the wooden planks and sticks has been painted or specially treated in some way to create the layering and tactility of the material. In some cases, I additionally carved wood or created a shape to enhance the narrative of the structure. Each sheet of newspaper was then painted by hand and laid out in a natural, quick manner.
These curls have been formed for a long time using the method of creating an airy and iridescent play of colour due to the shadows appearing in the folds of the newspaper.
The second artwork “Agony” was created according to the principle of “no plan” and complete intuition. Alla prima. I wanted to try to somehow express my emotions, not let my brain start thinking, but simply let my emotions act. But it didn’t work out that way in the end, because I had to wait for the material to dry before I could hang it on the wall and start working with spray paints.
● Is the process of making the work visible in the work itself? How?
Yes, the work process is visible and can be easily read. The materials used in the works are also clear.
● What are the various qualities of the materials used? Pliable, rigid, liquid, solid, resistant, permeable, etc.
The quality of the material is one of my contrasts. At first there was only paper and its fragility and short-lived life inspired me - I am the fragility of our life. This temporary approach is the best way to oppose the norms of monumental art. Now I'm contrasting fragile paper with strong, straight sticks and boards.
In addition, my works are endowed with smell and absorb sound.
● How is colour used in the work?
Colour is the foundation for me. This is the first thing I pay attention to. My color is complex, sensual, elegant and always noble.
I also use a color changing technique where on one side the painting has one shade and on the other another.
● What part does construction or composition play in the work?
These are always important elements in my work. The creation and design of the work itself gives me the greatest pleasure - it is the search for solutions and the right balances, the creation of the ideal composition. The work of art itself is living and analyzing the world around me.
● How does the work occupy, or use, space?
The space in my works is absorbed by the folds of paper. I'm saying that this is colour in space and time. In addition, when a person stands near a colour field, his peripheral vision, ideally, sees only the work, thus the viewer becomes part of this colour, communicating with it on a visceral level.
● Does the work have a relationship to time i.e. perhaps making the piece take a long time because of the processes used, perhaps the piece only exists for a particular time, perhaps the material qualities will change over time, perhaps the imagery refers to events in the past or future.
Time is built into the creation process - sometimes I deliberately make voluminous works, where newspapers are laid out sheet by sheet and so on over large areas of canvas, and then these works are quickly destroyed by rein outside the building.
In contrast to such a long process of creation, I make works alla prima when all the main ideas and elements are ready in one step, thus I achieve expressionism in the method of my work.
The newspapers that I use are also a kind of preserved collective memory of the past, these are recorded dates and events.
In addition to this, I also see time itself embedded in the folds of colour, because in order to perceive them and realize this, so to speak, to reach with the eyes the final point of colour in the fold - this is a nanosecond of life - this is imprinted time.
● How is scale used in the work. For example, what physical relationship is there with the viewer?
This is a very important point. This is actually a critical moment - I want the viewer to feel the work of all sensory organs. The viewer must be involved with the body, as in the works of Richerd Serra, where, for example, one had to walk to understand the size of the metal space.
● How does this work relate to other works you have made or are making? For example, is it part of a series or very singular in nature?
All my works are part of me, because right now I am at such a super-material point. And I have a lot of questions about these materials, so I’m not ready to rush, say, to another area and experiment there. I want to understand these basics thoroughly and see their potential.
● Does the work refer to/deal with real or imagined space?
It seems to me that my materials always refer to my culture - old, crumbling wooden buildings - this is about Russia. For Germany these are sheets of metal, shiny and new. For Brazil, this is water, it gives life to everything and everywhere on the warm soil of Brazil and it is everywhere and there is enough of it and it is loved and respected. For China, these are electronic chips with vermicelli soup.
● Does the work involve other people? If so, how and why?
My works are addressed to the viewer, without a viewer there is no point in making art for me. Therefore, the work will not be completed without a viewer opposite it.
● If the work has a title how does the title function within the work? For example, is it descriptive, does it address the audience, does it locate the work within a sequence of works?
More and more I’m starting to say that I want to leave the work untitled because the name is linguistics, which gives a lot of information and turns on the viewer’s brain. But I want the viewer to remain free from imposed information and include only the soul and sensations of feelings. At the moment, yes, I give the names as hints for the viewer. This is a direction of thought or significant additional information for the perception of work.
Are there ideas, insights, questions that have arisen out of this process that you can now bring to your consideration of other artists' work, or other practices outside of the arts?
For each case, I have examples of artists and practices from life. For example, I always follow opera, ballet and theatre, cinema and the auto industry, which is determined to follow the path of electric motors or whether this risky step was simply imposed by the Chinese market. The perception of time, space, colour, taste, music, etc. is always a complex game of composition and experience, which is reflected in art in one way or another.
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