Sex Libris №4 B.Kyseliova 1976

Oleksandr Aksinin made this print, Sex Libris №4 B.Kyseliova, sometime around 1977, and it's pure playful process. Look at the way he uses those hatching marks to create texture and depth. I love how the lines create a kind of visual buzz. The surface of the print has this incredible tactile quality, even though it's just ink on paper. It feels almost like you could reach out and touch the texture of the woven forms, or the curve of the figures on the bike. There's one spot, where the hatching gets really dense, creating this dark, mysterious shadow. It’s like Aksinin is inviting us to get lost in the details. Aksinin reminds me of Alfred Jarry, who was also working in a kind of symbolist mode. Both artists embrace a kind of absurdist humor, inviting us to question everything we think we know about art and the world.