Untitled 2022

Curator: We’re looking at an untitled drawing by Alevtyna Kakhidze, created in 2022 using ink and pen. What are your initial thoughts? Editor: It feels like a raw, almost childlike protest piece. The immediate emotional response is one of unease, stemming from the simplified figures amidst a backdrop of complex political statements. There's a discordant visual language at play. Curator: Indeed. Kakhidze's process seems to rely heavily on immediacy. Notice the gestural quality of the lines, the rapid, almost frantic handwriting surrounding the figures. This suggests a direct, unfiltered response to unfolding events, possibly for immediate sharing via social media, reflecting our always-online, quick-reaction media ecology. Editor: I'm drawn to the figure of Roman Abramovich presented as an almost deific being raining down what looks like gold. Is the artist presenting him as a savior or skewering that idea? Curator: It's worth considering that. The means of production - the readily available pen and ink, the rapid execution - allow for the immediate dissemination of this message. Think of how the potential sale of Chelsea football club relates to the movement of capital during a period of intense conflict, and the distribution or alleged distribution of resources becomes paramount. Editor: The presence of a cannon being manned by what could be a soldier juxtaposed with the figures around a bombed building featuring a Ukrainian flag raises questions. What memories are the images attempting to invoke and what commentary do they carry about geopolitical tensions? Curator: Precisely. And beyond the imagery, let’s think about the use of language, the handwritten statements embedded within the visual narrative, functioning as an integral element, adding layers of commentary. The overall impact feels very deliberate. Editor: There’s a striking ambiguity, I think, about the true aims or the destination of the money in the context of victims and the claim that this intention "is not solely intended for Ukranians" makes me wonder who this message is really directed at. Curator: Right. So what's communicated through process is that there’s clearly an economic-political commentary. It makes us consider labor in art during conflicts, the movement of money during conflict, and art that uses symbolism, the material realities reflected back to the viewer as this type of expression during social strife. Editor: Yes. A visual snapshot of a painful moment, rendered with both immediacy and lingering symbolic weight. Curator: A powerful collision of materials, methods, and contemporary social urgencies indeed.