Still Life 1018-04 Painting by Andrei Rabodzeenko

Painting: Oil on Canvas.

This is an ongoing series of still lifes in which I pursue the use of a limited, earthy palette. These static and subdued paintings are meditations on the harmonious unity of contemporary conflicting individualities.

My work on still lifes begins by browsing antique shops and thrift stores. Out of the vast array of objects, I look for strong, clear, statement-like shapes. I like pre-owned objects. They passed somebody’s taste. They have traces of previous lives. And then, sitting with other objects in my compositions, those objects only play roles of unity with each other. Like strangers in a public space they behave civilly, while carrying their personalities deeply hidden inside. In my still lifes, rather than recreating some situations like in a kitchen or a dining table, the objects are individuals that oppose each other on a theatrical or cinematic stage. When being grouped against each other in a superficially agreeable company, they carry subtle inner conflicts.