Untitled 2022

Alevtyna Kakhidze made this untitled drawing in 2022, using ink and watercolour. It’s all about the line here; a line that zips and zags, outlining forms with a kind of urgent simplicity, you know? I love the way she throws in these washes of color, especially the red streaks beneath the statue, hinting at something messy and unresolved. The bags of money in the center, each marked with currency symbols, are rendered with the same restless line, as are the figures and flags to either side. It’s like she’s saying, "Here's the world, simplified into marks." This reminds me of some of Philip Guston’s later work, where he embraced a similarly raw, graphic style. Both artists share a willingness to confront complex issues with a kind of disarming directness. Kakhidze isn't afraid to be messy, and in that messiness, she finds a way to speak truth to power.