Untitled 2022

Editor: This is a drawing, an “Untitled” piece from 2022 by Alevtyna Kakhidze. It seems to be made with ink on paper, with some textile elements perhaps? There’s a real immediacy to it, almost like a news bulletin scrawled in a notebook. How would you interpret this work? Curator: Ah, yes! Kakhidze often uses a diaristic approach. Imagine her capturing the zeitgeist, the anxieties of a moment, and transcribing it directly onto the page. It reminds me of those medieval illuminated manuscripts, where text and image were intertwined, but instead of religious devotion, we have news headlines and a looming sense of dread. Editor: Dread? I see the headlines, the troop numbers... but the playful lettering softens it, almost. Curator: Precisely! That’s the genius, isn’t it? The hand-drawn typeface, the almost childlike quality, creates a tension. It’s like hearing terrible news delivered with a disarming smile. Think about how folk art uses simple forms to convey profound truths. Kakhidze is doing something similar here, layering complexity with apparent simplicity. The personal and the political… Editor: So the medium becomes part of the message. The roughness, the red ink, even the "mistakes," they amplify the urgency? Curator: Absolutely. It's as if she's saying, "This is happening now, raw and unfiltered." And notice the Russian translation at the bottom—it’s like a whispered plea across borders. A gut reaction rendered as art. What will stay with you most, do you think? Editor: Definitely that unsettling contrast. The world-altering weight of the message and the lighthearted… delivery, I suppose. Food for thought, thank you. Curator: A pleasure. Perhaps we’ve only scratched the surface of Alevtyna Kakhidze's brilliance.