Ene Kull. PostA 1984

Oleksandr Aksinin made this etching, Ene Kull. PostA, in 1984, working with needle-sharp lines and a stark black and white palette. It’s like he’s thinking through the process of image-making as he goes, each line a little decision, a tiny, deliberate step. The image is contained in a stamp shape, with a lace edge, which has within it a dark oval in which Aksinin creates a surreal figure, a hybrid of human and geometric forms. Look closely and you can see how the varying density of the etched lines creates subtle tonal shifts. The texture feels almost like a fine fabric. Notice the surreal ribbon snaking around the central figure, it’s as if the image is unravelling even as it’s being created. Aksinin’s work reminds me a bit of Paul Klee, with that same playful approach to line and form, that lightness of touch, a shared interest in the power of simple marks to conjure complex worlds. It's a world in which art embraces ambiguity and invites us to bring our own interpretations to the table.