The bell tower of the Far Caves (Kyiv Lavra) 1996

Yuriy Khymych made this dreamy rendering of the bell tower of the Far Caves in Kyiv with oil on cardboard, and what a palette! A symphony of violets, indigos, and lavenders. I can imagine Khymych layering these colors, one over the other, building up the forms of the bell tower and the surrounding landscape. There’s a softness to the way the colors blend and bleed into one another, like a watercolor, but with the heft and body of oil. The paint isn’t exactly thick but there is a real physicality here. Look at how the brushstrokes create a sense of depth and distance. I can almost feel the cool, misty air and the quiet stillness of the scene. The rooftops and the trees are suggested with simple shapes, so that the bell tower becomes the main focus, towering over everything else. Khymych, like all artists, is in conversation with those who came before, and those who will come after, exploring new ways of seeing and feeling the world. Painting is a form of embodied expression, always open to new interpretations.