One of the biggest vices of modern art is that its message is often clear only to the artist behind it.
But Ukrainian painter Oksana Mas has found a way to make her work bridge cultural and geographical barriers.
Her work not only features at posh Sotheby’s and Art Basel international auctions, it is also proudly displayed in one of Ukraine’s oldest churches, Saint Sophia Cathedral.
The 41-year old striking blonde from Odesa paints, constructs and assembles.
She’s probably best-known for molding the past with the future in her work with pysankas, traditional hand-painted Easter eggs.
The decorative “Sphere of Good and of Spiritual Renaissance” by Oksana Mas stands in front of Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Cathedral during the opening ceremony on April 2. The sphere made with 3,000 traditional wooden eggs, pysanky, was opened before Easter, the main religious holiday of the Orthodox Church. (Ukrainian photo, odessa-daily.com.ua)
The project Constitution made of car rims wrapped in wooden eggs instead of tires evokes the thought that old folk culture is being trampled on by Western encroachment.
The rims are from the upscale Mercedes brand, whereas the eggs were painted by volunteers from all over Ukraine.
“When I started work on the project, I bought the Constitution of Ukraine on a street stand,” said Mas explaining why she named her wheels after Ukraine’s most important document. “It was so incredibly thin compared to the Constitution of the United States. It cost only Hr 5 and felt like a farce to me.”
Project Constitution, made of wheel rims and Easter eggs, represents the medley of old and new values. Dialogue is the oil on canvas painting.
Mas insisted she chose the Mercedes brand only to strike the influence of Western high-status brands on Ukrainian ethnic beliefs and traditions.
When I started work on the project, I bought the Constitution of Ukraine on a street stand.”
– Oksana Mas, painter.
Her message seems easy to interpret, as opposed to the works of other modern artists who often have no message at all.
A lot of modern art that makes the grade in Ukraine, however, seems amiss. Mas said the majority of Ukrainians are not open to deep interpretations just yet.
“With our country still developing, people are able to think only in strict categories: who, what and how much,” she said squinting from the bright camera lights.
“But the common values always stay the same. Those are the values written in the Bible.”
When Mas comes to Kyiv, she is chased by reporters to talk about life, as much as about art.
A shrewd observer and ardent speaker, she throws herself into a conversation almost never missing a beat.
During a Kyiv Post interview, she talked about how she managed to build her brand beyond Ukraine.
The common values always stay the same. Those are the values written in the Bible.”
– Oksana Mas, painter.
Earning a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, she went on to study the arts. While still at school, Mas opened a small firm specializing in creating shop signs.
“In the Soviet times, everyone somehow wanted to name their shops after themselves. I remember having to make a couple of signs with “Svitlana” written on them.”
That experience influenced her switch from commercial repetitiveness to creative suddenness and freedom later on in her career.
Mas said she organized her first exhibition in a mental hospital.
“At that time I just wanted to draw and didn’t think much of the meaning and social value of my work,” she recalled. “Of course, I needed certain courage to show my paintings there. But I didn’t see too many mental people within those walls. There are more of them out on the streets.”
Project Constitution, made of wheel rims and Easter eggs, represents the medley of old and new values. Dialogue is the oil on canvas painting.
She sold her first work – three graphic paintings, for $70. Mas wouldn’t disclose how much she makes on her work now but said she spends most earnings on new projects.
Moscow-based gallery Aidan takes Mas around the world for auctions and festivals. Cooperation with a Russian gallery, as opposed to a Ukrainian one, has no political bias, according to Mas.
An unfortunate experience with a Ukrainian dealer that “once displayed my work along with Uzbek carpets and Moldovan ceramics” preempted the switch.
Nowadays, Mas can be tracked down in one of her studios in Moscow, Odesa or Geneva.
Modern art varies. It can be beautiful or ugly, but such is the demand of present time. The idea behind it is to extract what’s inside one’s mind and show it raw to the public.”
– Oksana Mas, painter.
Developing her own technique of laying 30 to 40 coats of lacquer and oil on canvas, she doesn’t just stick to painting. Inspecting the art of science, she gives various tangible forms so people can understand them better.
Answering the question about Ukrainian modern art, Mas didn’t want to offend anyone.
“Modern art varies. It can be beautiful or ugly, but such is the demand of present time. The idea behind it is to extract what’s inside one’s mind and show it raw to the public.”
And yet, not many modern artists can share Mas exportability and fluidity across borders and minds. The seven-meter mosaic panel of the Virgin Mary made from 15,000 pysankas is one of the best examples of Mas’s multilingualism.
Hanging on the walls of the 11th century St Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, it’s a testimony that modern art doesn’t always have to be indecipherable and odd.
Kyiv Post staff writer Alexandra Romanovskaya can be reached at [email protected].
