Big hunt 1989

Vasiliy Ryabchenko made this huge painting, Big Hunt, with what looks like acrylic paint, and maybe some charcoal or ink for those scrawled lines. It's the kind of painting where you can really see the artist figuring things out as they go. I love how the colors create this weird, dreamlike space. There’s that earthy red ground, and then these figures that are almost dissolving into the background. Look at the figure on the right – the way the paint is scrubbed on, it’s like they’re trying to escape the canvas. Ryabchenko isn't trying to hide the process; it's all right there on the surface. This piece reminds me a bit of some early Kiefer, that same sense of mythology mixed with personal angst. But with Ryabchenko, there’s a wildness, an untamed quality that feels uniquely his own. It's like he’s inviting us into a world where the rules of painting, and maybe even reality, are up for grabs.