Untitled 2022

Alevtyna Kakhidze made this drawing with what looks like pencil and colored crayon, maybe? There are four figures looming large with smaller ones underneath and writing around. I imagine she must have been possessed when she made it, channeling some deep feelings, a need to document something real for herself. Look at the raw energy in these looping lines, how they form these figures almost floating on the page, and the urgency of her handwritten captions. I bet she wasn’t laboring over details or worried about perfection; she was just getting it down, quick, like a journalist making notes in the field, or a comedian riffing in the moment. I feel her, the act of expression, the flow of thoughts, like me when I’m painting. It reminds me of the outsider art I saw growing up, where artists use whatever materials they can find, but their vision is so clear. I bet Alevtyna feels connected to all these creators who came before her. We all do, we’re always talking to each other through our art, across time and space. It’s a wild, messy conversation, and that’s what makes it beautiful.