Olga Davydova. Beyond Aquilon 6+

Erarta Museum presents Olga Davydova’s exhibition - a journey to a mysterious country where the north wind is born

• The stingy nature of the Kola Peninsula, seen through the eyes of a resident of the middle lane
• The collision of man and the elements
• Canvas as a space of struggle and search for harmony

The project "On the Other Side of Aquilon" was created in the footsteps of the artist’s journey across the Kola Peninsula. It integrates painting, aluminum prints and found objects.

Working on the exposition, Olga Davydova correlated her own impressions with the perception of the north as the beginning of the world by the ancients. In these harsh lands, the dawn of mankind once shone, and therefore it is here that it is worth looking for the mysterious Hyperborea - a northern civilization, whose sons appeared from the blood of the titans. In antiquity, it was believed that this people lived "on the other side of Aquilon" - where the north wind is born, where the sun shines for six months, and then hides from sight for six months.

As a resident of central Russia, the artist was curious to explore the territory where a person, overcoming himself, masters the elements. This is life at the limit: avaricious nature, harsh climate, the proximity of the age-old ice of the Arctic Ocean, hard work and the arrangement of cities in permafrost.

The plastic solution of the paintings reflects this feeling of opposition and, at the same time, the desire to harmonize the two principles. White soil is like a substance detached from human life, and paint becomes the essence that tries to get used to this substance, to cope with it.