6 Steps 1979

Curator: Oleksandr Aksinin’s "6 Steps," created in 1979, strikes me as surprisingly intimate. It’s a mixed-media piece, predominantly textile. It reminds me a bit of a complex tapestry. What resonates with you as you look at it? Editor: It does feel intimate, like a coded personal narrative told through pattern and texture. But I find the geometric structure a bit unsettling, given its vibrant colouration. What do you make of this apparent tension between order and… almost chaotic expression? Curator: That tension is incredibly powerful. Consider that Aksinin was working within the Soviet Union. While outwardly this may seem like a simple, abstract pattern, under the surface it engages with artistic repression, and the limitations placed on individual expression during that era. The repetition and geometric forms are a direct comment on prescribed structures. How might the hand-embroidered textile contribute to this meaning? Editor: It creates a really interesting paradox, right? The laborious act of hand-embroidering becomes a form of resistance and defiance. I hadn’t considered that…so the act of making is almost as significant as the image itself. Curator: Exactly! It challenges the idea of art produced for mass consumption or state propaganda. Aksinin creates something deeply personal and intricate. Do you think a Western audience might interpret the work differently, lacking that immediate historical context? Editor: I think we’d perhaps focus on the formal aspects first - colour, pattern, and its visual impact – without appreciating its coded, resistant nature. That really shifts how I view this now. Curator: Precisely, and this tells us a lot about art and reception being shaped by societal contexts. Editor: Thanks - now I see "6 Steps" not just as a pretty piece, but a brave act. Curator: Yes, it underlines art's complex dialogue with society.