The Hole 200x160x180 cm was created after the outbreak of war in Ukraine. I felt stunned, my spine had lost its elasticity, I felt mute, round rasps of something purulent all over my body. The whole of March I had no contact with my family, I spent whole days on virtual walks in Telegram, checking what building the "priliot" (missile hit) was. In April, the family left Mariupol, then information began to flow in about killed friends and neighbors.
The work consisted of two stages. In the first one, I carved a hole in the ground, digging without shoes to a depth of 180 cm. In the second stage, for two days, I performed my artistic study in the hole, painting the walls with white lime and smearing the protruding roots with different colors. From the excavated earth, I created a playground with waterfalls and a jungle.
The sculpture in the negative is my attempt at solidarity with my city, where cemeteries were built in backyards, with my peers who had to change their houses into holes. I conducted a study of the earth and came to the conclusion that it is a primal matter that for a short moment carries information about its users, and the next moment it is clean and allows roots and worms to pass through it. I experienced the power of this element, working with the earth, mourning and sorrows fled through my feet, the body returned to its elasticity. Interaction with the recipient was a very important part of the work. I invite everyone to change their own shape stereotypes. The hole does not cause fear at a depth of 20cm, it begins to take the shape of a grave at a height of 60cm -120cm, in this range, some made spoilers on their last day; started to be a well after exceeding 170 cm.
I aerated several cubic meters of earth, in return she promised me to forget everything that happened in my body
The work was created during the international artist residency at Roza Center, as part of the No Time To Lose (NTTL) project. Ruszcza/Poland