Exlibris of D.Shelest 1976

This etching, Exlibris of D. Shelest, was made by Oleksandr Aksinin, and it's all about lines, hatching, and cross-hatching. It’s like a whole world made of tiny scratches. You can almost feel the artist’s hand moving back and forth, building up these layers of tone. The whole scene is bursting with surreal energy, like a dream you can’t quite shake. There's this amazing sense of depth and texture that comes from all the fine detail, and a very limited colour palette. Look at how he uses these marks to create areas of shadow and light, giving the composition form and weight. The little trumpets blowing all over the place create a cacophony! It reminds me of work by other Eastern European artists, like Goya, who used etching to create these bizarre, visionary worlds. Aksinin invites us to get lost in the details, and to see the art-making as an exchange of imagination.