About me

In my painting, I steer away from narrative and directness. I want the viewers to respond to my work on an emotional level and interpret it through the filter of their own experience and imagination. My work focuses on humans, our psyche and soma, and is an observation of how the body and bodily instincts both express and facilitate the emotional and cognitive evolution that happens continuously in one’s life. I am fascinated by the human mind, emotions and everything we don’t express and admit not just to others, but also to ourselves. I am inspired by the neuroscientific research on feelings being the direct perception of the internal state of the body and Freudian theory of the ego being derived from bodily sensations as well as being a representative of the mind. Human sexuality, being one of the fundamental drives behind everyone’s feelings, thoughts, and behaviours, has been an area of particular interest and exploration for me both in the artistic and academic context (I wrote my BA thesis on fetishism and then later my MA thesis on masochism as a creative force for artists). What has heavily shaped my work in this context was the experience of living in London, where I was immersed in the alternative adult scene and frequented fetish clubs as well as alternative live art events. In my painting, I also draw from my experience of working in physical theatre and performance, where the body expresses a story in itself. Hidden desires, repressed feelings, haunting memories, shame, pain and longing; passions and needs which escape socially accepted norms and fight for their reason to exist -- I like to observe how all these secret inner tales make their way into flesh, and subsequently onto my canvas. I am drawn to the intersection of the rational mind with the most primary instincts, which we are so unsuccessfully trying to curb. Through my work, I am inviting the viewers to explore the nooks of their mind and embrace the complexity of our psychophysical existence. My painting process is an overlap between accident and control. I work from sketches and photographs, which serve both as points of reference and triggers of ideas. I don’t do realism nor aim for a perfect picture. I like the rough edges. The way I see it, painting is an act of putting paint onto canvas through instinct, intention and accident. It’s about finding the balance between exercising control and letting go. Painting is not about manufacturing a best-selling product embellished with marketable slogans and trending hashtags. It’s a lifelong process of exploration and experimentation. I believe art can allow us to look at ourselves through a new lens, and help us reconnect with the vulnerable side of our human being. It’s a place of reconnection, to ourselves and to others, and of expanding our notion of “we”.