Olga Aksenova’s exhibition tells about nostalgia for the time she lived and its finiteness in physical space. The name «Bonfire on the edge of the clearing» becomes a symbolic collective image, containing the motif of the connection of generations, the unity of the past and present, reality and fiction.
The artist reflects on the theme of «borderline states», moments of «hanging» between one and other segments of existence. Such states are accompanied by feelings of fragility, expectation, vulnerability, as well as warmth, calmness and regularity. «Borderline states» act as part of the collective memory and at the same time its container, as a narrative canvas bearing the imprints of different periods, as well as the perception of reality changing from them. In painting, these are multi-layered overlays of images intertwined with each other, which create the effect of an endless mass of forms, one common collective organism. The artist shows the interaction of collective and personal memory as «personal», introducing the image of a more prescribed figure into the work.
Olga’s practice involves, on the one hand, a combination of classical icon painting and modern visual language. The painting technique, the general shapes of the silhouettes and the transparency of the color refer to the iconographic origin of the author. On the other hand, the artist adds images generated by the digital medium and translates them onto the canvas as more detailed images.
