Girl and Death 2016

Vlada Ralko made this piece, called "Girl and Death," using what looks like ink and watercolour. I'm immediately drawn to Ralko's process. The washes of colour and frenetic, almost scribbled lines show an artmaking that's immediate and raw. It feels like Ralko is working through something on the page, not trying to create a perfect representation. Look at how the brown ink bleeds into the background, creating this hazy, dreamlike space. And then there's the bright, almost cartoonish blue of the skeleton juxtaposed against the red strokes, which look disturbingly like wounds. The contrast isn’t subtle; it’s visceral. The red mark making down the centre of the girl's body has this incredible energy, like a scar or an open wound. It’s a gesture that speaks to both vulnerability and power. Ralko reminds me of Goya with her dark visions, or maybe Paula Rego, who also explores the complexities of being a woman in a patriarchal society. Art is always a conversation with the past and a way of understanding our present.