Untitled 2022

Curator: Right now, we're looking at Alevtyna Kakhidze's "Untitled," a drawing created in 2022 using ink and coloured pencil on paper. It's a striking, raw portrait that immediately captivates the eye. Editor: It has a very haunting, ethereal feel to it. The figure seems almost like a memory, caught between shadow and light. I love the stark simplicity, but there's something unsettling about her gaze. Curator: Indeed. Kakhidze masterfully utilizes minimal lines to convey complex emotions. Notice how the crude figuration contrasts with the more refined elements to explore themes of identity, presentation, and perhaps even the burdens of perception. Editor: The text scrawled above her head - "Prima Donna" in what looks like red crayon - that feels really crucial, doesn't it? It feels loaded with irony or maybe vulnerability. Is this about the pressure to perform, the artist herself maybe? And that jagged darkness behind her, a threatening shadow, maybe her own doubts? Curator: Absolutely. That is definitely open to such an interpretation. It is important to consider how the text, rendered with that naive quality, both complements and destabilizes our understanding of the figure. Semiotically, we might analyze this juxtaposition as the artist self-reflexively engaging with constructs of femininity and expectation. Editor: Right, and the red glimpses behind the white sweater… suggesting an intensity of emotion, concealed but always there. Even the fact that it’s on paper adds to that fragile quality. Curator: Agreed. Paper is important to this work and that tactility really emphasizes that connection between fragility and ephemerality within the work. Kakhidze is often making such statements by way of very humble materials. Editor: It feels so immediate, so unfiltered. Looking at this has given me this very wistful, quiet feeling… Curator: For me too, in its lines and contrasts. An unforgettable character sketch using minimal lines and striking juxtapositions.