VLADEY, together with OVCHARENKO, presents an exhibition of new works by Anna Parkina, in which the interaction between humans and the material world is depicted from a completely unexpected perspective.
A vivid, contrasting collage montage that distinguished Parkina's works in a recent exhibition project gives way to a flexible synthesis of watercolor painting, while the contrasting play of shadows is replaced by a smooth luminous layer that unites the elements of the composition, where there is no longer active opposition.
Currently, Anna Parkina showcases small lyrical watercolor works characterized by an energetic, light-filled color palette. The compositions feature people, plants, and buildings intertwined into intricate knots, with human embraces occupying a special place within them.
Inspiration for these works came from travels across Central Asian countries, which share a common past with Russia—including architecture rooted in a unified economic foundation. However, the artist is now more interested not so much in the legacy of Soviet modernism itself—whose custodians are now independent countries—but in the cultural patina that has developed over these post-Soviet years, based on autonomous economies and politics. In this context, modernist canon takes on an additional connotation—shaped by the irregularity and vitality of the new era.
According to her, the artist is interested in "the contrast between the concrete, solid framework of the Soviet era and the new life, which seems especially fragile in the context of current events."
However, despite its intimacy and subtlety, this new life inspires great hope precisely because it represents life—movement, development, and filling space with human emotions. Life replaces the past, thereby dispelling fears of stagnation and death.
