A work of art is a balance of three components: feeling, concept and form. The form exists as a communication. It imitates life, interprets it, simplifies it to symbols. The sensual component helps the form through engaging the viewer, attracting attention, but at the same time it is often a motivation for artistic expression. The concept holds the message together and organizes, also helping to find symbols and composition to express thoughts and feelings.

 

In my opinion, the task of the form is to involve the viewer in a dialogue due to its attractiveness, that can cave an external-visual form, dictated by fashion trends; or semantic, such as morality inherent in a particular society in a given period of time; humor and other manipulative techniques. Due to ambivalence, complexity, distortion of the expected direction of thoughts and other compositional tools a work of art makes a person think about phenomena and issues that are not characteristic of his social, informative or psychological “bubble”. Lionel Trilling said, "a primary function of art [...] is to liberate the individual from the tyranny of his culture in the environmental sense and to permit him to stand beyond it in an autonomy of perception and judgement". Therefore the form makes the viewer see a topic that is not initially attractive to him from an angle that is unusual for him.

 

As for the conceptual component, I think it is important to avoid the so-called moralizing and explicit criticism, except at the superficial manipulative (engaging) level of the work. Otherwise, the work turns into a rather one-sided and naive statement (propaganda). A statement as such does not necessarily have to have a verbal form. Very often in visual arts form and feeling are the prevailing components. It is important in this case to avoid visual conformism, otherwise the work turns into decoration.

 

The use of symbols is very useful for communicating on a fairly superficial level. This method is not applicable to create a truly meaningful dialogue. Creating a deeper connection, sharing the peak of the most similar emotions (catharsis) and even rethinking of personal moral attitudes and views is possible only when something “between the lines” is embedded in the very form of a work of art, something inexpressible in words or ordinary depiction. In my opinion, the ability to capture this ephemeral “interspace” is the peak of the highest convergence, unification between people (at least achievable within the boundaries of our physical existence and subjective perception). For this, both the skill of the artist himself and the openness of the viewer to new experience are important, as well as the cultural and emotional intelligence of both to varying degrees. In the visual arts, the main motivation of the artist and the viewer is to establish mental contact through the so-called "internal dialogue", capturing what is sometimes impossible to convey in words. Art uses a non-verbal language - a subtle play of indirect statements, nuances, views and perspectives.

 

For me, it is important to integrate the viewer's existence in the room as a part of the work and create a stage out of the exhibition space. I seek to create conflict within the viewer, to ask questions about what is real, what is constructed, what is idealized. For this, the atmospheric tone of the work is important, and (especially with installations) the work ends with the presence of its viewer, for whom the surroundings create a contemplative space. The creation of the atmosphere occurs through the interweaving of psychological techniques, visual and spatial elements, philosophical constructs. Installation creates a surreal space through a combination of scenography and existing room. The exhibition space and the surroundings behind it turn out to be a stage set on which the scenery becomes part of real life. The viewer as subject turns into an object.

 

I'm interested in creating spaces within spaces, exploring the idea of ​​a threshold between outside and inside, between real life and image. We contrast consciously what is real to that which is merely (re)presented, as if one were always at hand and the other intangible. But when we are looking at the image, human brain thinks it is witnessing reality. Certainly, events are always tangible, but the inner context of these events and how we perceive them are only constructions of our ideas. I often use the window motif when talking about the boundaries (both real and imagined) between the public and private spheres. Windows, like doors, keyholes and crevices, are surfaces that restrict vision and movement in both directions.

 

I don't want to be limited to one medium, because my artistic practice is a never-ending search for the most fitting forms to communicate my ideas. The exhibition space creates a unique experience for the individual. Art cannot be more complicated than life. It should not be though, because the form composed of symbols, simplifies the idea sweeping away the superfluous. But the work can be woven into the fabric of life, becoming part of it. Through the experience of an artwork (artificial experience), our perception becomes more multifaceted. Installation (especially “total”, according to I.Kabakov) is the most manipulative genre in the visual spectrum, comparable to cinema or fiction. It immerses the viewer in its space, making him experience its atmosphere. Painting, photography and sculpture are more comparable to poetry, where the perception of a work cannot be separated from the previous experience of the viewer, the exhibition environment and the context in which they exist. Often these characteristics of different media are mutually applicable to varying degrees.

 

Often in my work there is a motif of ideal spaces, whether it is a storefront, the language of advertising or flawless  facades, which I put in opposition to the elements of chaos. Entropy as the driving force of chaos is expressed in imperfection, fragility, impulsiveness of the material. Confrontation and coexistence of idea and materiality, chaos and order, creation and destruction create an endless dance of life. These same principles underlie art as such.