My name is Liza Petrova. Born in 1993 in Moscow, Russia, in Russian Jewish family. My identity was formed during the great hopes of the new century, influenced by the image of a big, open world where democracy works and all countries are connected by a global world. In 2016 I graduated from the Moscow Architectural Institute and worked as an urban planner for several years, but then I decided to leave the profession to concentrate on fine art. It took me few years to find the field of art I want to explore, the main topics, the technique. It was an important experience to realize all that one-on-one with myself. Now I’m ready for the next step in my art career. At present I live in Serbia, after a year living in Armenia, where I fled Russia in the first days of the war in Ukraine, thus joining a new wave of Russian emigration, once again proving the circular nature of human history. I feel that my role as an artist is that of a chronicler of my time and I base my work on this position.
My art explores the overarching theme of an individual: a soul within herself, within society, within the world. My painting series address this vast topic in more detail, focusing on specific experiences: the feelings inside one’s body, inside one’s head, and personal life experience. Listening to the emotional climate of the society: of the streets and voices, of the slogans and posts, of the hopes and disappointments. Trying to capture the elusive harmony of the connection between a human being and nature, their poetic interaction with the world beyond the problems of civilization, when the wind in the Caucasus mountains makes you light and free, when the sight of the Namib desert makes you feel the spins of the world and time.
I conduct these in-depth studies, looking for points of intersection between those domains and gradually assembling a general image of my Contemporary. Living in the era of disenchantment in big ideas, we are left to reflect all the horror of the last centuries, condemned to irredeemable struggle to overcome the ancient inhumanity and indifference. Torn between productivity and entropy, making same mistakes over and over again, we have achieved so much, but completely forgot how to engage in meaningful and cultural dialogue.
In creating a portrait of this soul I visualise and my time, I want to join an endless chain of artists of the past and future, writing, even if without their knowledge, the most honest and inclusive chronicle of humanity. “I do see myself as the heir to a vast, great, rich culture of paint – of art in general – which we have lost, but which places obligations on us” – Gerhard Richter. It is vital for me to feel this connection of time and memory in my work. Therefore I use compositions, plots, and poses from the art of the past to emphasize this dialog.
Keen to understand the world through the person, I have been trying to implement this understanding to my depiction of a human figure. It can be a figure of a person or a demon – the image of a human being embodying emotions and thoughts. As Vrubel said: demon is not a devil, but a soul and it represents the eternal struggle of the restless human spirit. The pose can tell so much about inside conflicts and mood, sightline, muscle tension – all that to me is a rich narrative about oneself, about the surrounding realm, about the time.
The figure is the center of interest in my paintings, surrounded by abstract background or the elusive world. Expressive poses, the conflict of colours and textures these are the main features of my artistic method.
I am always experimenting with mixed media and trying out new materials and techniques. I believe that each material has its own dramatic intonation which I use as an abstract component of my work. I like to set an emotional pulse of association, while leaving room for individual reaction and understanding. That is why colours and textures are so important to me – they convey so many layers of non-verbal information, which is an inherent part of every dialogue, easily perceived by person, you are talking to. This abstraction provides the space for individual associations. This is what completes my artistic statement and makes the dialogue with the beholder genuine.