A page from Abracadabra 3 2020

Curator: Welcome. Today, we're looking at “A page from Abracadabra 3” by Pavlo Makov, created in 2020. It’s an ink drawing on paper that immediately brings to mind architectural renderings or some sort of codified map. What are your initial thoughts? Editor: It does evoke that feeling of a schematic, yet the imprecise quality of the ink lends an unsettling air to it. The repetitive geometric forms are almost oppressive, and the variations in their execution suggest the presence of labor and an element of chance. Curator: It's interesting you pick up on that element of labour, given the context. Makov's work often engages with ideas of fragmentation, post-Soviet identity, and the deconstruction of systems, themes that are particularly poignant considering his Ukranian background. The rigid structure mimics bureaucratic documents. The “Abracadabra” series hints at magic, yet is used as a failed formula for change. Editor: Right, seeing the materials as ink and paper shifts my perspective; it highlights the tension between mass production—those stamped-like repetitions—and the hand-made, individual touch. I am drawn to consider, also, the act of consumption in terms of information overload and its production in a contemporary, digitally driven society. Curator: That makes me think about the relationship between control and chaos at play. The gridded layout seems like an attempt to impose order, yet the blurring, almost smudged quality of the ink suggests entropy, questioning whether any system, be it political or artistic, can truly contain the human spirit. This piece could reflect the breakdown of meaning and the subjective realities in navigating political shifts and trauma. Editor: I agree. The limited palette concentrates our view onto the formal arrangement as such. It calls attention to those very processes: applying ink, arranging these figures systematically, that form both order and chaos within art making, that reflects back the human condition. It reminds us about those base units by which social structures are made. Curator: Absolutely. Thinking about “A page from Abracadabra 3” in its totality encourages dialogue between artistic agency and societal structures. Editor: Yes. By observing those material elements, their systematic, repetitive nature—we recognize ourselves. Thank you.