Prince 1994

Vasiliy Ryabchenko made ‘Prince’ and it looks like he used pastel and pencil on paper. The scene is dark and theatrical, and the artist has really scratched into the grey surface. It looks like he's built up layer upon layer of tones and textures. I bet he was standing up, moving around, thinking, and feeling the weight of the pastel in his hand. What do you think he was trying to get at? I imagine Ryabchenko trying to create a psychological space, somewhere between waking and dreaming, and like he's in conversation with other artists. He uses these ghostly figures and architectural motifs to create a sense of melancholy. That red square might be an homage to Malevich, a window, or even a stage, where a drama is eternally frozen.