Anxiety

2024, Hand embroidery with hand-made and machine embroidered text , Contemporary

This is a Digital Original of the artwork, digitized using the process. Each DO is verified, blockchain-secured, and comes with full rights for exclusive digital ownership.

In the series, Kadyrova presents traditional vernacular embroidery motives with an added phrase “AIR RAID ALERT.” The title of the series—“Anxiety”—unfolds a wordplay: the newly embroidered notification contains Ukrainian word “ТРИВОГА”, which means both “anxiety” and “alert”.

The medium of embroidery in general allows the creation of a very conditional image with no detailing, often simplified funnily and naïvely. Tapestries featuring deer compositions were popular across the post-Soviet territories, crafted as soothing decorations for the home. But when paired with the frightening phrase, the contrast underscores the absurdity of everyday life during wartime. With a deeply ironic twist, these once comforting pieces of home decor become a very slow media, quietly warning of rockets approaching.

Valeria Schiller

Art historian, writer, and curator of contemporary art

Anxiety is a work from the "Anxiety" series by Zhanna Kadyrova that incorporates text and traditional embroideries. It captures the pervasive anxiety experienced by those who remain in Ukraine, living under the constant shadow of potential threats until the war ends.

Anxiety by Zhanna Kadyrova

The work features a pastoral landscape. The artist depicted a lush forest with a rustic house nestled amidst the trees. Several deer and boars are grazing in a clearing, and a man in traditional attire stands nearby. Overlaying the embroidery is white, bold text in Ukrainian: "ПОВІТРЯНА ТРИВОГА!" which translates to "AIR RAID ALERT!" in English.

Anxiety’s Art Style: Idyllic Threads, Alarming Words

Anxiety is a contemporary work of art. For its creation, the artist used various techniques, including hand embroidery with hand-made and machine-embroidered text. The sizes of the work are 70cm x48cm.

The artist used predominantly muted and earthy colors, creating a sense of tranquility and peace. The trees are depicted in various shades of green, the deer and boars are shown in light brown.

Unique Features. Emotions and Mood of Anxiety

Anxiety Series’ history traces back to 2022. The artist started working on it in late March 2022. Despite taking refuge in a remote and relatively safe location, Zhanna faced the daily reality of air raid alarms, which often sounded multiple times a day. These alarms became a grim leitmotif for the lives of everyone in Ukraine.

The choice of a cozy, traditionally crafted image juxtaposed with the stark warning text emphasizes a theme of anxiety and disruption during wartime. Anxiety Series’ meaning underscores a sobering reality: there are no truly safe places in Ukraine.

As the series evolves and is exhibited internationally, the artist has started incorporating materials from the host countries. The alarm text has been translated into local languages, serving as a poignant reminder that this war is not merely a local issue for Ukraine. It warns of a theoretical threat to all civilized nations if russian aggression is not stopped.

Explore more works by Zhanna Kadyrova

Zhanna Kadyrova has created numerous works of art, including pieces from the “Anxiety” Series, the “PALIANYTSIA” project, the “Instrument” project, the “Harmless war” project, and many more. Explore these works, participate in auctions, purchase the artist's pieces, or view them on the UFDA website.

Digital original details

Format
Digital Original Standard
Resolution
400 MPX
Color depth
48 bit 281 Trillion Colors
Original file size
1417 MB DNG File

Physical original details

Country
Ukraine
Years
2024
- Styles
  - Contemporary
- Medium
  - Hand embroidery with hand-made and machine embroidered text
Physical canvas
70cm x 48cm
Framing
No framed

Zhanna Kadyrova

Zhanna Kadyrova: Artist's Path

Zhanna Kadyrova, born in 1981 in Brovary, Kyiv region, Ukraine, is a multidisciplinary artist known for her innovative approaches in sculpture, photography, video, and performance. She graduated from the Taras Shevchenko State Art School in 1999.

Kadyrova has received numerous accolades, including the Kazimir Malevich Artist Award and the Grand Prix of the Kyiv Sculpture Project in 2012, as well as multiple awards from PinchukArtCentre: the Special Prize in 2011, Main Prize in 2013, and the Special Prize – Future Generation International in 2014.

Zhanna Kadyrova’s biography includes her participation in numerous solo and group exhibitions, including the Kochi Biennale (2023), the Bangkok Biennale (2022), and the 58th, 56th (international projects), and 55th (Ukrainian Pavillion) Venice Biennale. In recent years, she has focused on site-specific projects, including an outdoor installation in the Semmering Mountains (Austria).

The artist is a member of the R.E.P. group (Revolution Experimental Space), alongside Nikita Kadan, Ksenia Hnylytska, Volodymyr Kuznetsov, and other artists.

Zhanna Kadyrova’s Art: Exploring the Bold Vision of the Artist

From the outset, Kadyrova's artistic practice has embraced a diverse range of media—including sculpture, photography, video, and performance—anchoring itself in a thoughtful engagement with site and space. Zhanna Kadyrova's technique is defined by her experimentation with forms, materials, and meanings. Frequently reinterpreting the aesthetic ideals of the socialist past still embedded in Ukrainian cultural heritage, Kadyrova's work draws symbolic and material inspiration from urban construction materials. Ceramics, glass, stone, and concrete thus become central elements, infusing her work with both physical and metaphorical weight.

When russia's invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Kadyrova was compelled to adapt her artistic focus. Relocating to the Carpathian Mountains, she initiated the humanitarian project PALIANYTSIA, which has since been exhibited internationally across Italy, Germany, Norway, Japan, France, the U.S., Sweden, Austria, Georgia, Romania, Thailand, and India. Now back in Kyiv, Kadyrova has created new works reflecting on the war, presented in her first major retrospective at Kunstverein Hannover in Germany.

One of the central themes in Zhanna Kadyrova's artworks is the reexamination of the legacy of past eras, particularly the USSR. While she works in various formats, she is most renowned for her mosaics, which critique Soviet aesthetic traditions by drawing on the styles of Constructivism and Socialist Realism. Through her use of this medium, she references its historical role as an ideological art form during the Soviet era, as well as its more decorative function after Ukraine's independence.

Zhanna Kadyrova’s installation “Crowd” (2012–13) features collages of newspaper photographs on 40 glass panels. By stripping away markers of context, geography, and class, the collection of faces serves as a metaphor for protests, illustrating how individual identities merge within the broader scope of political movements.

Zhanna Kadyrova’s Works for Sale: Create Your Own Collection

Zhanna Kadyrova’s works, celebrated for their innovative use of materials and profound commentary on society, have become highly sought-after by collectors and art enthusiasts alike. Notably, her works, including those from the “Anxiety” series, the “PALIANYTSIA” project, and many more, are offered for sale at auctions around the world.

Zhanna Kadyrova’s art for sale offers a diverse selection, ranging from bold installations to intricate mosaic pieces. Her works are available at various price points, providing a unique opportunity to invest in contemporary art that thoughtfully engages with political, historical, and cultural themes.

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