I am a graphics artist. Foremost I work with graphics materials and watercolour. Realism is the mainstream of my art. The centre place of my paintings belongs to cityscapes. That is why I travel a lot. It gives me an undeniable reason for creation of new paintings! I started painting long ago since my childhood and could not stop on that way.
1. Tell us about your background and journey.
I am a graphics artist. Foremost I work with graphics materials and watercolour. Realism is the mainstream of my art. The centre place of my paintings belongs to cityscapes. That is why I travel a lot. It gives me an undeniable reason for creation of new paintings! I started painting long ago since my childhood and could not stop on that way.
Clearly, my serious approach in the world of art began with entering the School of Art for Children when I was 12. My full artistic education started with the School of Arts for Children and lasted for 12 years when I graduated as a specialist in Graphics Design.
The major place where I got my art education was Secondary School of Arts (today it is called the Lyceum of Arts named after Boris Ioganson affiliated to the Russian Arts Academy). It is considered to be one of the best schools in the world! I have been exhibiting since my student times.
That was the first time when I have been recognised and received my first award for the project «Live worthful in a rhythm of metropolis». That time I was a 4-year student of the Institute. Nowadays I am a prizer and my name is in the shortlists of many collective exhibitions in and outside Russia.
2. What inspired you to pursue art?
Sometimes, it seems that my dream to become an artist has appeared before my existence. This is my way of communication with the world around, my reflex on it. As my colleagues say: «I paint because I cannot but to paint». My emotions generate everything.
I just want to reflect my own impressions - immediate emotions appeared at a certain moment and at a certain place. Imposing structures and buildings created by human genius impress me a lot. Cityscape is the main motif of my artwork. It is a life-stream with its currents which are flowing and changing, disappearing and reviving. Advanced civilisation leads hectic lifestyle.
Cities and metropolises are centres of culture. They display their own history and receive life-like portrait features. A great part of my artworks was created under dazzling influence of the cities images that I have visited.
3. How would you describe your style and aesthetics?
Generally my art may be attributed to a realistic manner. But it is an illusion as I do not try to paint it true to fact. In this case my emotions are on the forefront and I’m eager to reflect my impression of what I have seen I let myself free in the race for perfect representation of reality.
I feel free shifting buildings, widening the streets, erasing the odds - when it recreates the exact image. All these modifications are invisible for the viewers. The curious in this game is that spectators do not realise it! However they help to recreate the atmosphere. When one gets at a certain place, he does not take it neither as a scenic nor an isolated view.
We realize the space in motion. The view point is changing even with a head movement. Try to add to this movement some steps… and your memory generalizes only an image as an impression of everything that has been seen. So, I try to collect these views in one. The perspective may not exist in real life, but the artwork makes no doubt in its accuracy.
4. Which mediums do you usually work with and why?
For the most part I use watercolour and graphite in my works. Formally both techniques are considered to be graphics. In spite of the fact I divide them into painting and graphics. Light, air and colour are the heart of watercolour. This technique gives me maximum opportunity to reflect the world through the prism of my perception and demonstrate it to my spectators.
Graphics is my greatest passion. There is magic of light and shadow, admiration of forms and concentration… Emotions become clean in graphics. I would call graphics the most deep and sensuous technique. In the other aesthetics of forms is reviving when colours become odd.
But of course I do not limit myself with only these materials. I also like soft pastel and ink very much. And I prefer experimenting with materials.
5. What thought process do you follow before starting your work?
I do a lot of sketches when travelling. It is the best way to keep impressions: «came, saw and fell in love». A sketch needs no details. I may find them later in photos. But it keeps composition, idea and mood. This is the first transformation of reality through the prism of artist’s sight.
Those sketches often helped me to restore in my memory what was missed in photos. I trust it more than any photos. When I come back to my studio, I use my sketches and photos as a ground of my personal image of the world.
6. Who is your favorite artist and why?
I’d say that Albrecht Dürer, William Turner, Canaletto are my all-time favourite artists among the old masters. I also admire Egon Shiele, Ivan Bilibin, Hokusai. And I guess that putting them all together would make a weird looking list.
There’s no rational explanation to my admiration. I just feel a surge of inspiration when looking at their works. Their art shows me the richness of the world we live in!
7. What tips and advice would you give to aspiring artists?
There are some advices from my personal experience. I insist on never be afraid of making mistakes. Never be scared of blank pages and of faulty lines. It’s always better to be free for making a mistake than to be prostrated with fear of them. The second one is more noticeable.
Many times I met talented people who were loaded with a great number of taboo and rules from their student’s time. «Do not hold a pencil in that way, never start with the side part of the sheet»… and many more. Certainly those rules were not set for no good reason.
There was a specific purpose-education. «Never use a ruler to set your hand». However when one has already learnt it, those rules loose their significance. I would like to share my idea: creativity can’t be born in a mind limited with frames of rules.
8. Which is your favorite book and why?
It is difficult for me to give pride of place to one book because I have many favourites. But maybe the first one in the back of my mind is «The Trial» by Frank Kafka.
Why? The way I see it, this is a script or a game plan for human life. We are social animals who are drawn in a constant flow of events. We make the flow ourselves, but we totally fail to understand how it works and we are not able to control it.
Interviewed By - Serene Ingle
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