NEW YORK, NY.- Jonathan LeVine Gallery presents Sacred Gravitation, a series of new works by Ukrainian artist duo Interesni Kazki in what will be their debut solo exhibition at the gallery.
Interesni Kazki have been painting together for over 15 years and are pioneers of the graffiti movement in Eastern Europe, as well as the forerunners of muralism in Ukraine and other post-Soviet countries. With an aesthetic that has evolved from traditional graffiti writing to allegorical and figurative compositions, their work invites viewers to reflect upon true values and contemplate the magical side of the universe.
When translated to English their name means Interesting Fairytale. Renowned for imaginative imagery ̶ inspired by science, religion, mythology, folklore and history ̶ each piece is created in an attempt to look beyond the bounds of what is visible and present a new perception of the world. The new body of work presented in Sacred Gravitation comprises intricately detailed paintings and drawings that merge physical and spiritual elements existing in a dreamlike universe.
Anthropologist and curator Dr. Rafael Schacter articulately describes, “The celestial, allegorical paintings of Interesni Kakzi attempt to bring both the spiritual and the mystical into the everyday. Intertwining folk-history and religious imagery with science fiction and fantasy, they present the viewer with a profusion of mysterious narratives and visual fables, which they must attempt to enter into and disentangle. Inspired as much by artists such as Dali and Moebius as they are by the Ukrainian muralist tradition and native fairy tales, Interesni Kazki have thus formed a style of contemporary muralism with a transcendental, emotive aesthetic at its core, a popular, ethereal form of public art.”
Interesni Kazki is an artistic duo currently based in Kiev made up of Aleksei Bordusov and Vladimir Manzhos, who also go by their respective aliases AEC and Waone. The pair met in 1999 while painting traditional letter graffiti in the crew Ingenious Kids (IK). In 2005, after being exposed to innovative street art they had seen abroad, they began collaborating as Interesni Kazki and abandoned style writing in exchange for figurative compositions. In 2010, they had their first solo show in France at Galerie All Over and have since exhibited in galleries in Italy, Los Angeles and New York. Their large scale murals can be found all over the world, in countries such as Mexico, Croatia, Portugal, Spain, Slovakia, India, South Africa and the United States.
