Lot 317: It, 2003

It, 2003
Oil on canvas. 140 x 189 cm. (55 1/8 x 74 1/2 in).  Signed and dated 'CHICHKAN 2003' lower right.

 N. Bordukova, A. Puchkov, J. Scherbak, eds., Contemporary art, Ukrainian Academy of Arts, Kiev, 2004, front cover (illustrated)

 Acquired directly from the artist.

Ilya Chichkan was born in 1967 in Kiev, Ukraine. A painter, author of installations, photo and video projects, Chichkan became affiliated with the Ukrainian artist movement New Wave, which developed at the beginning of the 1990s as a response to the major changes that took place in Ukraine after the Perestroika. Using traditional painting techniques and elements of Ukrainian baroque art, the Ukrainian New Wave artists committed to exploring new and active roles for artists within society dealing with post-colonial issues like transculturalism and the belief that as cultural systems of exchange evolve, they are no longer constrained by outdated boundaries and regulations. In 1988-1989 Chichkan and a group of other artists (A. Gnilitsky, M. Mamsikov, V. Tsagolov, O. Golosiy, D. Kavsan, V. Tribuna, L. Vartyvanov, J. Solomko and I. Jusupov ) founded a collective Commune Paris, named after a street in Kiev. Commune Paris functioned not only as the artists' studio but also became a meeting point for artists, critics and curators, who had an active interest in the cultural issues of that time. The works produced during that period have been dedicated to the revolt against the bureaucratic cultural institutions that had developed during Soviet times. Chichkan is full of vitality, artistry and other sticking-out natural qualities, which he transfers to the individuals he portrays. The work It (2004) included in the current sale belongs to the series Shocking Asia called after the eponymous documentary film from 1974 about Asia's shocking cultures. The film, which was banned in the USSR and could be viewed only in the underground cinema clubs, left an unforgettable impression on the artist's imagination. "After a certain period of time, when I had a chance to visit the former amicable countries of the Soviet Union (Vietnam, Cambodia, China) myself, I produced a series of works touching on the subject of sexual ambiguity. The works from this cycle portray beautiful beings of an indefinite gender."