Temptation method 1990

Vasiliy Ryabchenko’s “Temptation Method” is a large oil painting of figures painted in a palette of lilacs, greens, and fleshy whites. The painting feels built up—as if the artist painted over images, again and again, to arrive at the finished work. I can imagine Ryabchenko circling around the canvas, adding a touch of colour here, scraping away a form there. The lilac seeps in and around, binding everything together like a bruise. I feel a connection to this artist and his journey. The forms are not quite legible, but the gestures are. Look at the figure reaching up. Is it a man or a woman? What is the red line they are holding? These are just a few of the questions Ryabchenko seems to be asking. Artists are constantly building on the ideas of those who came before, a continuous line of inquiry and inspiration. For Ryabchenko, painting is a way of embracing the unknown and finding meaning in the process itself, a method of temptation, perhaps?