Madonna-2022

Installation

Metal sculpture (194 cm high) and two digital paintings printed on canvas (60 x 60 cm)

The composition is inspired by the Ukrainian mothers of Mariupol, Chernigiv, Kharkiv and others places in Ukraine, who have given birth to their children while hiding underground, or in bunkers, during the bombing of their homes.

Virgin Mary inside a bomb. It suggests the instant destruction of an archetypal image, culture, values, ideals, by a … man made, man-controlled object.  (Lisa Larsen, Art Historian)

The fallen bomb enshrines the silhouette, which in conjunction with the Christian symbol of the Madonna creates the dome of the temple. The temple of suffering and pain, in which the greatness of the human spirit is manifest.

Never before has the combination of yellow and blue had such a dramatic tone, or drawn as many additional layers of meaning. Now, they are immediately perceived as the colors of the Ukrainian flag, synonymous with the events in Mariupol, Bucha, and many other new associations.