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I was born into a family where everyone paints. From childhood, I remember thick notebooks with drawings-stories about Cossacks, saints, etc. (funny and satirical), which were drawn by cousins. My grandmother drew flowers for jewelry, she could do everything with her hands... They told funny stories about the great-grandfather of a self-taught icon painter who painted icons for his fellow villagers. For a long time, I thought that this is how all families live - filled with dreams and creativity with stories about great-grandparents. A difficult question: "When did I start painting in the first place?". I remember my sister and me squeezing the colored sap of plants and painting everything we could get our hands on.

In my childhood, in the Dnipropetrovsk region, the family spent a lot of time in an area where there was a beautiful landscape, part of which was "God's mountain" (this is the name of ordinary humanity, helped by an old grandfather - he was a local herbalist). The landscape of the mighty Dnieper with overflows of all colors and colors was constantly changing... That mountain remained in my memories and constantly, as support accompanies my creative search.

Can a place broadcast its word, its story into space? My work is the answer to the question.

#1

Night On Ivan Kupala. Cardboard, Oil. 34.5x46.5 Cm, 2016

Night On Ivan Kupala. Cardboard, Oil. 34.5x46.5 Cm, 2016

In my country, there is a legend about the night of Ivan Kupala. It used to be a summer holiday evening and a mystical night. The bottom line: on this night a fern flower bloomed and whoever finds it could become a person whose wishes will be fulfilled. That night a fern flower blossomed and whoever found it could become a person whose wishes would be fulfilled. On this magical evening, young girls and boys performed rituals in the water and lit fires through which they floated in pairs. The girls wove flowers into a wreath and decorated their hair with them. At the end of the evening, the girls gave these floral decorations to the water and watched to see if the decorations would drink from the shore and in which direction (this meant that this year the girl would get married and from which direction the groom would be). The tradition of flying through the fire in pairs is associated with trust. If the couple holds each other's hands while jumping over the fire, their relationship is strong and reciprocal. If their hands did not stand the test, it meant that the couple did not have trust and understanding. A lot of interesting things happened that night, people enjoyed the rest, had fun... and there was always a person who went to look for a fern flower to make their dreams come true.

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#2

The Dream Of Mishurin Rig. Mixed Media, Acrylic, Canvas. 50x70 Cm, 2019

The Dream Of Mishurin Rig. Mixed Media, Acrylic, Canvas. 50x70 Cm, 2019

As a child, I often heard my grandmother tell me about her childhood. About the changes that took place in society. Famine, revolution, war, typhus so many different tragic milestones in the history of the country intertwined with my grandmother's personal life and worldview. But the strongest was the manifestation of life, family stories, and creativity. In my fantasies, I tried to imagine the place where my grandmother's childhood took place. It attracted and transformed my imagination... I transferred these reflections to this picture as much as possible.

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#3

Karnaukhivka. On The Mountain. Canvas, Oil. 60x80 Cm, 2018

Karnaukhivka. On The Mountain. Canvas, Oil. 60x80 Cm, 2018

Karnaukhivka is an iconic place in my childhood and creativity. It was there that as a small child I conducted my first experiments with colors, with the sap of plants... I drew with the help of plants and their coloring properties. There I made my first conclusion that the fruits of cherries, mulberries, herbs, etc. can be used in my creative search. And at the same time, my imagination was influenced by the landscape... its color was constantly changing and blurring in space. Hills, mountains, ravines, lowlands, and river floods up to the horizon reflected the breathing space of the earth. Something very simple, only a couple of trees and the feeling of hills remained in my memories, which I recorded.

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Галина Шевцова
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I also remember the magical changing landscapes of Karnauhovka when I look at your works! Thank you, Alexandra, for the artistic images that tell about the landscapes of childhood!

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#4

Miracle Kodak. Mixed Media, Acrylic, Canvas. 40x40 Cm, 2019

Miracle Kodak. Mixed Media, Acrylic, Canvas. 40x40 Cm, 2019

This is a continuation of the story about the place where I live and the night of Ivan Kupala. I allowed myself to draw what is happening in space in this area (Kodak, Dnipro) during the night.

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#5

The Trees Are Coming. Canvas, Oil. 50x70, 2017

The Trees Are Coming. Canvas, Oil. 50x70, 2017

There was a period in my life when everything was very bad: finances, opportunities, prospects. The feeling was that my country was driving me out of my home. it was as if space was squeezing me out. In society and space, all conditions were created for all living things to gather the most valuable and leave the territory. This picture shows the strong reflections on this. In my imagination, even trees left their roots and went on a journey to other worlds in search of a better existence.

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