Untitled 2022

Alevtyna Kakhidze made this untitled drawing with pens and pencils. I love how immediate it feels, like a thought caught right as it flies by. The bold, almost childlike lines give it a rawness that’s really powerful. Look at the figure of the prone Ukrainian, rendered with thick black strokes, a stark contrast to the seated ‘Russian Artist’ drawn with finer lines, holding his smart phone and cup of coffee. The difference in how the figures are drawn feels important. The bright colours give it a surreal edge, like a dream that feels too real. It reminds me of Philip Guston, in the way it fearlessly tackles difficult subjects with a deceptively simple style. Art can be a conversation, a way of working through the messiness of the world, not necessarily offering answers but at least asking the questions.