Kundalini 1983 1983

Oleksandr Aksinin made this small, square, symbolic world with paint in 1983, and right away, I am drawn into the rich color relationships. Just imagine him in the studio conjuring this up! It feels like an esoteric vision; the artist is accessing something through symbols and color. The surface seems very smooth, which contrasts with the wild imagery. I see a snake coiled around a pool, but it is also something else entirely. Aksinin worked with graphic elements, which become apparent here. The green is so alive against the black and red! There is something unnerving about the geometry. The snake is such a powerful image. It appears in so many artists' work, like Hilma af Klint's, for instance. It makes me think about how artists constantly rework images from the past, always transforming them into something new. Aksinin is in conversation with other artists; his painting allows for endless possibilities, even within a small frame.