Anastasia Alexandrin
Artist in Residence at TVAK
Ahmedabad.
Anastasia Alexandrin, Ukrainian born American, Philadelphia–based artist is known for her ability to make art from the trappings of everyday life and to question traditional ways of seeing, she could almost be characterized as an artist-anthropologist who uses drawing embodied in line and at times theatrical instances of materialized thought to pursue an open-ended formal dialogue between form, style, material, and meaning; exploring assertions, solutions, and propositions rather than questions or problems. She turns expectations and stereotypes upside-down.
drawing on the intangible, unstable, and fleeting qualities of circumstance as both subject and metaphor to address ideas of women, juvenescence, and culture. But her interests extend beyond a feminist cultural critique. She creates a sense of wholeness from fragments, piecing, editing, suturing multiple points of view to create a sense of moving through spaces, extending time. In her work images are fixed, but the vanishing point is usually in motion, and unstable. Sometimes there is an illusion of seamlessness, but the drawings are fractured and composed of multiple, often fluid, points of view.
A few of the artists from ahmedabad were invited for the West Zone Sculpture Camp and Anastasia was invited along to Interact with and see the working process of 25 sculptors.
Below : Photographs of Udaipur and the sculpture camp.
An Exhibition Showcasing her work was held at the end of the three month stay.
A glimpse of one of the works on display:
A set of six drawings.
About Her Work : She says "My work deals with ideas and telling stories. Each drawing is a story. It is mostly about women and their thoughts and emotions. I try to communicate the emotions of the modern day woman, the woman you meet on the street, her feelings about the world, her struggles and her view point. I tend to slant toward positive empowering thoughts and emotions. I lean towards expressing aesthetics and beauty, the sublime. I draw strong woman full of mystery and meaning that is understandable to our day and age. In this exhibition there is a series deconstructing the layers of emotions a woman can wear using symbolism of sunglasses, hat and bird to convey the emotional intonations. It is a deconstruction of what lays within or perhaps beyond the social veneer that I am exploring in this show."
A Few Questions Answered :
What made you come to this residency?
I was very interested in India and the culture. my focus is on women and i wanted to live in that environment and be influenced by everything i saw and heard. I was also very intimidated because I didn't know a lot about what to expect but something told me to just go! And I am so happy I did. I found the website very helpful and informative, as well as my email correspondence. I knew I was in good hands.
What can you tell me about your experience at the residency?
My first impression was Wow! I can really create here! The house has this amazing creative energy about it that makes you want to create in a whole new way that is still your own but has expanded in some way. Everyday I woke up and wanted to work! I started to draw immediately when I arrived. I usually take a while to get started but here the creative juices just started to flow.
And the more I drew the more parts of India started to creep in. Bit by bit. I made more art in the three months I was there then I usually make in six months at home. I am thrilled!
I also met extraordinary Indian artists and people in general. I enjoyed the culture so much and was lucky enough to be welcomed to be apart of all the festivities and activities around me.
India is full of wildlife and nature. I have never seen so many birds, cows, monkeys, camels...the list goes on. It was beautiful and enchanting. I made friends with many dogs too! Infact two sweet puppies kept me company the whole time I was there, and as if they new I was leaving they left themselves one day. Animals in India are very perceptive, they look you right in the eye and they see you!
Has anything changed for you because of your residency?
I feel like everything has changed since my residency at Tvak.
I have been given a gift to see and experience a whole new way of life. To live in a whole new way filled with crazy unimaginable moments, with laughter and friendship, with tuk tuk ( Auto-rickshow) driving, monkeys and so much more.
The way I think has shifted, my views as an artist, what it means to be an artist has changed and I have found much more comfort in my own skin since then..
Oh and being in India has made me a sculptor ! I finally understood what conceptual art was.
Anastasia is an Artist par Excellence and an amazing warm person, All who have met her have greatly been influenced by her dedication to work and resilient spirit.
Wishing her all the best for the future. !!
