Exlibris of Zhanna 1976

Oleksandr Aksinin made this etching, Exlibris of Zhanna, in 1976 and the process of making an etching seems perfect for the image's subject, a mindscape as labyrinth. The whole piece is made of tiny lines, etched into the surface, creating a kind of dense, vibrating texture. It’s almost architectural, with these train car-like structures and a cage. I get a sense of depth but also of being trapped, like the portrait of Zhanna herself, peering out with a slightly melancholic expression. Look at the lower part of the image, it becomes almost abstract, dissolving into pure pattern. The lines create this overall feeling of enclosure, a dense web that is as psychological as it is spatial. Aksinin’s work reminds me of Piranesi, with the dense detail and strange, impossible spaces, but it also suggests a more personal, internal world, a landscape of the mind etched into metal.