Blue landscape

The format of the works reinforces the sense of fragmented perception of reality: from disparate elements, like in children’s building blocks, a cohesive image emerges. But the trick lies in the fact that the rule by which they are ultimately combined is never fully clear. The mutual flow of figures and background intensifies the ambivalence of perception, creating a multi‑layered composition and playing with the geometry of the gaze. At the same time, the cohesion of the composition is maintained by colour — an area in which the artists are probably among the best on today’s Russian art scene. This is an amazing balance of brightness and restraint, joy and sorrow. This time, the already traditional palette of ochre, swamp green, and reddish‑brown is complemented by deep blue and grisaille.

Anton Khodko