41. Wings!

Choosing a topic for the next post, I looked through Victor's drawings and noticed a lot of wings. I think, this reflects his love of freedom, his adventurism and desire to travel around the world. One of my previous posts was about angels (#21), and there are some more of them, like in the following drawing, but it is not just angels this time.

 

"A Song of an Angel."

"Песня Ангела"

 

 

"Inspiration" 

"Вдохновение"

 

 

"A Flying Ship" 

"Летучий Корабль"

For the next drawing, I need to explain the title, although it has nothing to do with wings. I don't remember exactly how, but probably I was telling Victor something about my Geometry class, and the term "Quadrature of the circle" came up. Known also as "Squaring the circle," it's one of the famous unsolvable problems of antiquity. Victor sent me this drawing entitled "Cubature of the sphere". Being far from mathematics, he actually came up with the  title simply using analogy and expanding the wording from 2-D to 3-D. I've never heard of it, but checked it out, and I was very surprised to discover that this term  actually exist. The math behind was too complicated. So I am absolutely sure it is not what Victor meant...

"Cubature of the sphere" 

"Кубатура Шара"

 

"Untitled" 

"Без Названия"

 

"Wounded Eagle"

"Раненый Орел"

  

40. Challenge - 8: It is Actually About Me!

It is not obvious what unifies these drawings, why they are all in one post. One simple reason is that they were all sent to me within a few weeks, although some were made a long time ago, and some very recently. Another simple reason, pretty superficial, is that all of them have an image of a woman. More importantly, most of them were part of our "Game," Victor's responses to the themes I gave to him. My "assignments" this time were pretty vague and somewhat abstract, and his interpretations, as usually, were not that straight-farward, so it would be impossible to explain how each one responds to a particular theme.

I read a book about Japanese design, and one of its main principles was Perfection of Imperfection.   This idea impressed me because it was close to my sense of aesthetics. I shared it with Victor, and he sent me this drawing that was made awhile ago and actually depicted his friends. I can sense how it responds to the theme, but can't really explain it...

"Perfection of Imperfection"

"Совершенство Несовершенства"

This one is pretty simple. I told Victor that while driving Upstate NY and listening to music, I was singing aloud in my car, for the first time in my life. Why for the first time? First of all, I am rarely by myself in the car, and it was a lucky combination of songs that I like, great weather, anticipation of a good hike... So this was my theme, and this is his response.

While writing this, I suddenly realized that although this blog is definitely devoted to Victor ("My Friend, The Artist"), it is kind of about me as well. It took me only 40 posts to notice it!! Does it make me immodest? I guess...

"Desire to Sing"

"Петь Хочется"

The following theme came from my visit to the store REI in Soho, where I was buying gear for my week-long camping and hiking trip in Utah. Even after living in America for 18 years, I was shocked with the abundance of everything you can and cannot think about, and the task of choosing between dozens of brands, sizes, colors, prices and models of everything, from clothes and hats to sleeping pads and compasses. The drawing has nothing to do with the store, except the difficult task of choosing.

"Choice"

"Выбор"

I really don't remember what conversation caused the next theme, but it doesn't necessary require any background information.

"Past, Present, Future"

"Прошлое, Настоящее, Будущее"

The next one is actually pretty straight-forward. It's exactly what it's meant to be: I just told Victor that I had a happy day - for several material and immaterial reasons: my son found his first job, I was leaving to Utah next day, my school day was very satisfying. To make the day even happier, this was one of the rare occasions when Victor actually didn't find this drawing among thousands of what he had already had, but made a new one, although I am sure he could find many that would fit the theme.  

"Happy Day"

"Счастливый День"

39. Challenge - 7: How do you Draw Emotions.

A long time ago, in one of the first posts, I started showing Victor's drawings about various human states and emotions: Patience, Doubt, Despair, etc. He didn't necessary try to draw these particular feelings. As usually, when I gave him a theme based on something we talked about, or something I've experienced on that day, he would pick something from his work, name it accordingly, and send to me. Throughout the last couple of months, I received a few more of his drawings that fit this category.

When I give Victor a theme, I never know what to expect. I am thinking about a word, or an idea, in a certain way, but very rarely he finds something that matches my expectations. This is good, I guess, meaning his art is original and not predictable. More often he surprises me finding a totally unexpected twist of the theme I "assign." He may turn it into a joke, or play with words, or present some weird aspect of that very idea.

I gave him a theme - "Tenderness." I definitely didn't expect this, although I was amazed that in spite of ugliness and un-humanness of the creatures he drew, the feeling is so obvious here!

"Tenderness"

"Нежность"

Strangely, no twist in the following drawing. Or did I miss it?

"Jealousy"

"Ревность"

The following is not a drawing, but an applique. It is Victor's response to my theme "Remorse." In Russian, it is two words that would be closer translated as "gnawing of conscience." I couldn't argue with it, because we clearly see at least gnawing... I asked Victor when and why he made it, and he answered that it was a long time ago, when he was actually bitten by a dog.



"Gnawing of Conscience"

"Угрызения Совести"

The next theme was "Selfishness," or "Egotism." That's what Victor sent to me:

"Egotism"

"Егоизм"

I said that it wouldn't work: clearly, I meant this at a personal level, not in the political sense. Next day he sent me another version. I remember this drawing since the 1990's, and I doubt it had anything to do with selfishness. But surprisingly, if you think about it, it really does.

 

"Egotism"

"Егоизм"



38. Spirals attack!

A few weeks ago I noticed (but since then didn't have time to make this post!) that spirals followed me everywhere!  It probably started with the mugs that I made based on Victor's design. I wrote about this design in older posts, but I'll repeat it briefly here. When I took a ceramics class at Columbia University, Victor sent me this drawing that he made long time ago, not even imagining it would ever be implemented in clay.

Since then, I have made at least three attempts to bring this mug to life, every time messing up either glazing, or shape, or both. Finally, I made two mugs right before Victor came to New York in April, and gave one to him. They still weren't perfect, but my free course ended, unfortunately. Soon after that my daughter visited me, and after I showed her the mug, she noticed that it actually repeated the pattern on the rug in my living room. It's interesting that I walk there many times a day and never notice!

Of course, I wouldn't have started a blog post just for this reason. But around the same time Victor sent me this drawing made the day after he returned to Ukraine. Does my (his?) mug have anything to do with it? There is no way to tell. He never answers when I ask him questions like this. All I know that at that time he didn't know about the rug discovery.

After I received this drawing, I told him that I felt that spirals surrounded me, so I needed to make a post about them, and asked if he had any other drawings with spirals. This is the first time ever that I actually asked him to send me something specifically for the blog. He sent a few of his drawings with spirals in them with the comment that a spiral is one of the richest and most ornamental symbols. No wonder it's so common.

  

On top of all of this, in my Math Club last week we discussed spirals associated with the Fibonacci Numbers. This omnipresence of spirals is really scary!

I am not a symbologist and not going to analyze the meaning of spirals; this blog for me is just a way to present my friend's drawings in a somewhat connected and meaningful way.

37. Happy Mother's Day!

I don't need to invent a topic today - it's obvious. And I can always rely on diversity of Victor's topics - there will always be something on any topic, even though in Ukraine there is no Mother's Day as such. They celebrate March 8th which is Women's Day, whether it's a mother or any important woman in your life. But you don't need a special day to celebrate the miracle of motherhood.

These drawings don't really need comments and even titles, but I'll keep the titles that Victor gave them when he sent them to me, all at different times and on different occasions.

 Mother

 Madonna 1

Madonna 2 

Holy Mother 

 

The following two drawings can also (arguably) be placed on this page. Birds don't celebrate Mothers's Day, but we - human mothers - know exactly how they feel.

36. Unexpected New York: Random Encounters.

This is the third and the last in the short series of the posts about NYC. It is not a travel blog, but still a blog about an artist, so I was not intending to show where we went and what we saw. I selected a few pictures that are the most artistic and interesting, both in their form and content.

When we walked in Chinatown, I was surprised that Victor didn't take that many pictures. Then suddenly he grabbed his camera.

Chinatown

This is what he saw. Was he simply waiting for this color miracle? (This lady definitely should have carried a red bag, especially because this is the most common color of plastic bags in Chinese stores.  Or at least yellow. Or Victor should have photoshopped it!)

 

Then on a late train ride we saw another miracle, both of color and shape. The girl was sleeping, but, just in case, I had to stand between her and the camera to pretend that Victor was taking a picture of me and not her.

 

Rockefeller Park, Downtown Manhattan

I really like the "story" here, and the bright kite in the middle of the otherwise gray landscape looks so special!

 

World Financial Center

Again, a great combination of the plot and a color scheme! (Ha-ha! I am talking as an art critic!)

 Liberty Island

OK, enough colors! I (and most Americans) probably would not even stop here, but Victor was impressed by this view. He called it: "Free children in a free country." (Ironically - or not - this happened on the Liberty Island!) Yes, I remember from the times I lived in the former Soviet Union, one of the common rules was "No walking on lawns." And lying on a lawn was (and still is) simply unimaginable.

Central Park

This picture even better illustrates the "lawn" idea. But, as I've said, this  selection is based primarily on aesthetic principles, and it really is an amazing view.

A more complete report of our New York "tour" I posted on my Facebook.  

35. Unexpected New York: Reflections and Shadows

Bright sun, modern architecture and observant eyes of the artist provided many surprising and beautiful moments. I selected several of them.

 

The Freedom Tower (or, rather, its reflection)

After I selected this picture, I realized that not everyone who (hopefully) will look at it is from New York City, so I decided to add a more expanded view. Unfortunately, I still don't remember where it is and what building is reflected in what building.

This picture continues the theme of reflecting buildings in other buildings. I wonder, how many people have noticed it? I have passed this street many times and never noticed this effect.

Frederick Rose Hall - Jazz at Lincoln Center at Columbis Circle

I wonder if the architect of this building had invisioned how it would reflect clouds and the sky, so that you almost can't tell which is which. But it also takes an artist to notice this!

Brighton Beach at sunrise.

Thanks to Victor's jet leg, we caught a sunrise. These are our shadows (their length proves that it is very, very early).

This is the same sunrise. Well, it is not that much about reflections or shadows, but it still has to do with light, and is simply beautiful! By the way, who put this building here? It ruins the whole horizon line. And you cannot even cut it from the picture because that is where the sun rises!

The Cloisters

Metropolitan Museum of Arts

Once again, I was just looking at the sculpture, but Victor noticed three shadows right away, and then even found a spot with four shadows. They kind of allow you to see the statue from several points without walking around.

34. Unexpected New York: People and Statues.

Last week Victor spent in New York! Fortunately or not, there was no time for drawing, but, obviously, plenty of opportunities for taking pictures. We went to many places that I had visited and taken pictures of before, but, thanks to him, I have noticed so many things for the first time.

Tulips and blooming trees all over the city only added to its beauty, and people, it seems, were intentionally posing for him in all the right places.

 

 A, C, E Train Station 14th Street

When looking at this couple now, it is hard to believe that the guy did not sit there for the picture. Or did he? Everything: feet, bag, arms, turn of his head... Too bad he doesn't ware a hat..

 Metropolitan Museum Of Arts

Even though the poses here are not as matching as above (except their stillness, maybe), it still feels that these two are made for each other. I can easily imagine that the girl actually sits exactly as the statue. 

Guggenheim Museum

Herald Square

Battery Park

 

Liberty Island

This one is not about matching poses, but I simply love the enthusiastic face of the guide telling the kids about the history of the Statue of Liberty.

To be continued!

33. Wild Wild West

I spent my recent mid-winter break in Arizona exploring Canyon de Chelly with its amazing rock formations, Indian ruins and petrogliphs. When I returned, Victor greeted me with a series of drawings that he made a long time ago: a perception of the West by a person who learned about it primarily from books by Fenimore Cooper and their screen versions.

32. Spring is Here!

To continue my Spring theme, I want to show a few of my favorite "seasonal" pictures made by Victor. They don't need any comments - they are just beautiful!

"Капель"

"A Spring Miracle"

"Весеннее Чудо"

"Надснежник"