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At the Museum of Free Belarus, an exhibition of paintings by Anton Radzivonau titled “A Long Journey” has opened.
This is not the artist’s first exhibition in this space — in 2022 he presented a project with the fairy-tale title “Birds with the People,” a series of works strongly associated with protest themes. That series is also part of the current exhibition; however, the title “A Long Journey” reflects a new stage in Anton Radzivonau’s creative and personal life.
We spoke with the artist about what it’s like to live as an émigré painter in the Polish capital.
— The next exhibition at the Museum of Free Belarus — is it a kind of summary of a certain stage in your creative development, or simply a regular display of works?
— An artist shouldn’t work just for the drawer — artworks need to be shown. This is my fourth exhibition in Warsaw. The first one took place at the Museum of Free Belarus; at that time, I managed to take some of my paintings out of Belarus, while others were printed on canvas. In this exhibition, I’m showing original works that I’ve created here in Poland.
— Were the other three exhibitions also held in Belarusian spaces?
— The first, yes, was at the museum. The second exhibition was in a Polish institution, and the third — in a Polish gallery. I came there myself with the idea of organizing an exhibition. They told me how much it would cost, and I declined. Later they looked at my works and decided to host the exhibition free of charge.
— Could you outline what the money usually goes toward when organizing an exhibition?
— Transporting the works, hanging them properly — ideally, you’d also pay a curator who helps with the installation. Another friend wrote the exhibition concept. I prepared the whole thing in a week.
— Is it really possible to prepare an exhibition in just a week?
— Of course, if you already have the works. There are artists who only create when there are commissions and money, and there are those like me who create all the time. I earn my living working at an IT company, and I do my art in the evenings.
— Do you have a studio in Warsaw?
— No, I don’t have the possibility to rent a studio, so I work in my apartment, which means I can’t create large-scale works. I pay for the apartment and taxes, so there’s no money left for a studio, which would cost at least a thousand zlotys.
When I first came here, I worked in my specialty — as a restorer. For half a year near Wrocław, I restored a palace, and afterward — monuments in Warsaw cemeteries. In winter, I would set up a tent with a gas heater inside so I wouldn’t freeze.
— So now you’re in a good situation as an artist — painting for an IT company…
— The ideal situation for an artist is having a studio and selling your works. I collaborate with one Polish gallerist, but now I’m more focused on the international level. In the fall, I’ll have an exhibition in Italy. You can’t rely solely on galleries anymore — now there’s the internet and social media. There, I can show my works to someone in Nigeria, the USA, or France.
It’s important for an artist to depend on no one.
— But when you work with a gallery, there’s no condition preventing you from selling your works elsewhere?
— I haven’t signed any contracts with that gallery. So I can work with many people; there’s no restriction.
— You also make T-shirts…
— Yes, that’s called merch. T-shirts and hoodies with my own drawings. I print them at a Polish company, bringing them an image of my painting. But first, I make them for myself, post a photo of me in the hoodie with my drawing on social media. Or you walk down the street in it, and people ask where you got it. That’s how orders come in.
— Alright, let’s move from the difficult life of an émigré back to your creativity. By training, you’re a restorer?
“Yes, I graduated from the Belarusian Academy of Arts, department of monumental and decorative painting. I worked in my specialty for three years at the National Art Museum. As a young specialist, I joined the museum in 2014, and in 2017 I moved to an IT company. Working at the museum, I learned computer programs, started painting what I liked, and uploaded my works on Behance. That’s where I was noticed and invited into IT.
In my creative work, I decided for myself not to follow trends. I am interested in what I do, even if it’s unpopular or not liked by some, there will always be someone who appreciates it.
I’ve noticed this: if you work just to please someone else, it ends up being uninteresting. The main thing is that you like your own style and subjects. Some people ask me, ‘Why is there so much white-red-white in your works?’ Well, that’s just what I want today: whatever I do, I incorporate white-red-white elements everywhere.”
— “Perhaps your style — so detailed, hyperrealistic, and steampunk — is influenced by your restoration education?”
—“Maybe, because when I was getting my secondary art education, I painted more broadly, with sweeping strokes, and later I moved into the details.”
— You work in series… Which of them did you show at the exhibition?
—for example, the cyber-beetles. Some of them I painted in Minsk, and three in Warsaw. Humanity is moving toward combining biotechnology and robotics. In these works, I was inspired by the series Black Mirror, specifically the episode where all the bees died and humans invented killer robot bees. Some people call it steampunk."
I also show portraits of my wife and my series Birds with the People. Part of this series remained in Belarus; they are safely hidden. After we had already left, the KGB came to our friend’s place. My works were already hidden, but my wife’s politically themed works were confiscated.
I continue the bird series; they are now more atmospheric, better than the earlier ones.
The next series, The Long Journey, gave its name to the exhibition. Now I want to paint ships and trains—everything related to travel.
— Why is your journey depicted in a Gothic style?
— Before I left Belarus, I had a dream that I was running through a European city where Gothic cathedrals were being destroyed. I was shouting, “What are you doing?” Since then, I started painting Gothic churches.
— It reminds me of what you paint in computer games?
— Maybe, but in some works I convey real landscapes, not imaginary ones.
— “Sea Lanterns” — what was the inspiration here?
— People explore Mars, but they don’t know who lives in the depths of the oceans. This series is my imagination about who might live there.
— You set aside part of the exhibition space for works in a different style. What inspired their creation?
— I painted Dead Bird on August 15, 2020. The internet was full of news, and we started seeing people coming out of Akrestsina. Also, a relative called me and told me what had been done to her friend there. I painted this work in half an hour.
— When you painted it, did you know about Ales Pushkin’s work, in which he painted the flag with his own blood?
— No, I didn’t know. But this next piece I painted after learning about Ales Pushkin’s death. It’s called Anger, When You Can Do Nothing.
The following work conveys an evening depression: when I first arrived, I went through a difficult period.
— It’s interesting how external factors influence your style. Usually your works are detailed and structured, but sometimes something happens and an expressionist emerges…
— Perhaps, but the main thing for me is to paint; it’s like training for an athlete. So even when I come home tired from work, I still sit at the easel because I’m afraid I won’t have time to create everything I want in this life.
Original article: reform.news
