Volodymyr Strelnikov & Alexandra Kadzevich: Constellations
On July 2, the fifth exhibition of the Constellations series opens at the Dymchuk Gallery. Within its framework, works by Odesa artists of different generations are presented 鈥� Volodymyr Strelnikov and Alexandra Kadzevich. Constellation is a series of exhibitions in which the artistic practices of two generations are compared: representatives of Odesa nonconformism of the 60s-80s and contemporary Odesa artists. The exhibition will feature watercolors from the 2000s and abstractions from the 90s to 2000s by Volodymyr Strelnikov and the series Between Things and Short Words of 2018 by Aleksandra Kadzevich.
Although the goal of 鈥淐onstellations鈥� is not to establish continuity or to select artists based on formal similarities, a certain consonance of artistic practices and personalities is still a prerequisite for forming a pair. In the case of Strelnikov-Kadzevich, the first thing that catches your eye is the connection of artists, albeit not at all complementary, with their city. Odesa with its richness of textures and colors acts both as a background and as an inspiration, as something that attracts and repels, something that is difficult to live without. Strelnikov, forced to emigrate under pressure from the Soviet special services to Germany in 1979, already from the end of the 80s, as soon as it becomes possible, regularly returns to Odesa. Kadzevich, who went to study in Kyiv, also admits that although the artistic life in the city by the sea is less active than in the capital, she is drawn to return there. In response to this almost Mediterranean general laziness, as well as the sluggishness of artistic processes, Kadzevich creates the Noch gallery in his workshop. Strelnikov, along with a group of like-minded nonconformist artists, was one of the initiators and active participants of unofficial apartment exhibitions 鈥� the only opportunity to exhibit in the 60-70s. In either case, of course, due to various circumstances and reasons, the artist goes beyond his role as a solitary creator and undertakes to 鈥渆quip鈥� the world around him, creating situations, opportunities and provoking the development of the local art scene.
If we return to the artistic practice of Strelnikov and Kadzevich, then we can see some similarities here. Even though both are experimenting with materials 鈥� they have a wide range of artistic means in their arsenal 鈥� however, they remain true to painting. For Strelnikov, this is work with abstraction as a continuation of the traditions of modernism in the conditions of the primacy of socialist realism; for Kadzevich, it is work in the conditions of a post-medium, where the pictorial beginning always remains. Sometimes their painting moves from canvas to board or cardboard or is filled with collage elements, calligraphic splashes. Both are important in how the material behaves, they attach fundamental importance to color and light.
On July 2, the fifth exhibition of the Constellations series opens at the Dymchuk Gallery. Within its framework, works by Odesa artists of different generations are presented 鈥� Volodymyr Strelnikov and Alexandra Kadzevich. Constellation is a series of exhibitions in which the artistic practices of two generations are compared: representatives of Odesa nonconformism of the 60s-80s and contemporary Odesa artists. The exhibition will feature watercolors from the 2000s and abstractions from the 90s to 2000s by Volodymyr Strelnikov and the series Between Things and Short Words of 2018 by Aleksandra Kadzevich.
Although the goal of 鈥淐onstellations鈥� is not to establish continuity or to select artists based on formal similarities, a certain consonance of artistic practices and personalities is still a prerequisite for forming a pair. In the case of Strelnikov-Kadzevich, the first thing that catches your eye is the connection of artists, albeit not at all complementary, with their city. Odesa with its richness of textures and colors acts both as a background and as an inspiration, as something that attracts and repels, something that is difficult to live without. Strelnikov, forced to emigrate under pressure from the Soviet special services to Germany in 1979, already from the end of the 80s, as soon as it becomes possible, regularly returns to Odesa. Kadzevich, who went to study in Kyiv, also admits that although the artistic life in the city by the sea is less active than in the capital, she is drawn to return there. In response to this almost Mediterranean general laziness, as well as the sluggishness of artistic processes, Kadzevich creates the Noch gallery in his workshop. Strelnikov, along with a group of like-minded nonconformist artists, was one of the initiators and active participants of unofficial apartment exhibitions 鈥� the only opportunity to exhibit in the 60-70s. In either case, of course, due to various circumstances and reasons, the artist goes beyond his role as a solitary creator and undertakes to 鈥渆quip鈥� the world around him, creating situations, opportunities and provoking the development of the local art scene.
If we return to the artistic practice of Strelnikov and Kadzevich, then we can see some similarities here. Even though both are experimenting with materials 鈥� they have a wide range of artistic means in their arsenal 鈥� however, they remain true to painting. For Strelnikov, this is work with abstraction as a continuation of the traditions of modernism in the conditions of the primacy of socialist realism; for Kadzevich, it is work in the conditions of a post-medium, where the pictorial beginning always remains. Sometimes their painting moves from canvas to board or cardboard or is filled with collage elements, calligraphic splashes. Both are important in how the material behaves, they attach fundamental importance to color and light.
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