"Is the Wound Healing or Growing?"

2023, Painting, Acryl, Unprimed linen canvas, Folds, Gelatin , 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.

The history of wars is grim and merciless. This is unveiled by Polina Shcherbyna, a young Ukrainian artist, in her works created after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by russia. The upheaval experienced by every Ukrainian has influenced Shcherbyna's art in two significant ways: by altering and deepening the themes and questions she addresses, and by transforming her technique. Shcherbyna has gradually transitioned from vibrant painting, which was her primary medium in the past, to monochromatic works and woodburning. This shift seems to echo the events in her native country, where one must now grope for light in the darkness. She depicts tree branches growing from seeds and wings as evidence of a spiritual presence, constantly affirming that light will overcome shadow.

Kateryna Tsyhykalo

Curator, art historian, PhD

"Looking at the world from inside the orange room, we observe the substitution or even loss of the natural color of everything that surrounds us, the spirituality of “man” closes itself in a cocoon, with a promise until better times. Some plant strives to grow through the wounds that have already become the talismans of everyone who is able to feel. The plant can become a miracle cure or sharp blades, but only time will tell. Before the time, humanity still remains helpless in its desire to know the future.

The paradigm of human existence is increasingly and for more and more people turning into a refugee camp where no rights are respected anymore." G. Agamben. People around the world, in large and small groups, are rebelling against the infringement of their rights and freedoms. Any oppression for the "body of humanity" only causes more resistance. But sometimes the “body of humanity” freezes, not wanting to be crippled, loses power over itself and the path to freedom becomes an invisible future or a long-forgotten past of a social slave. And the price of freedom is just what haunts us."

Polina Shcherbyna

Digital original details

Format
Digital Original Standard
Resolution
400 MPX
Color depth
48 bit 281 Trillion Colors
Original file size
1768 MB DNG File

Physical original details

Country
Ukraine
Years
2023
- Styles
  - Contemporary
- Medium
Physical canvas
174cm x 97cm
Framing
No framed

Polina Shcherbyna

Polina Shcherbyna is a talented Ukrainian artist who works across various mediums, including drawing, painting, photography, and installation art.

Summary of Polina Shcherbyna

The artist engages with the expanded concept and perception of painting, presenting it as an object that reflects on iconography and the aesthetics of the temple.The artwork of Polina Shcherbyna is interpreted be the artist as a double view of the world of the fall of the Anthropocene idea.

Biography of Polina Shcherbyna

The artist was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, in 1993. She studied in department of monumental painting and temple culture named after Mykola Storozhenko at NAFAA, earning a Master of Fine Arts degree.

Polina Shcherbyna’s paintings have been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions. Her solo shows have been held at Gallery DIM in Warsaw, M17 Contemporary Art Centre in Kyiv, Idealfruhstuck in Paris, and Šopa Gallery in Kosice, among other renowned venues. Moreover, she participated in group shows, such as “Materia metters” at Ukrainskyi Dim in Kyiv (2024), “Traces of timelessness” at Künstlerhaus Sootböern in Hamburg, “BRÜCHE” at HAUS KUNST MITTE in Berlin (2024), and many more.

Currently, the artist lives and works in Leipzig and Berlin.

Polina Shcherbyna’s Famous Works: Exploring the Artist’s Journey

Polina Shcherbyna’s original paintings include “Is the Wound Healing or Growing?” (2023), “ONE LESS TREE IN PARADISE” (2022-2023), “The Winter Landscape Has Changed To — The Landscape Of Emptiness” (2023), and “Battallia of Modernity” (2023), among others.

Additionally, the artist has created numerous firing paintings and drawings on wood, and installations. These include “Branches of Great Tree (Double-Sided Work)” (2022), “The time when stones will be gather” (2023), “Overcoming the Black Spot” (2022), “Against the Darkness” (2022), and many more. Polina Shcherbyna’s paintings for sale are available at auction on the UFDA website.

Polina Shcherbyna’s Art Style

The artist interprets her artworks as a dual perspective on the fall of the Anthropocene concept. This duality is central to her creative process, reflected in her installations featuring double-sided artworks on wood using pyrography and carving techniques. These works often incorporate poetry sound as an additional element of the spatial-auditory perception of the work.

On one side, Polina Shcherbyna’s art evokes horror and powerlessness in the face of humanity's darker aspects. On the other, her works embody faith and hope for the future.

A primary material in her practice is unprimed linen fabric glued with layers of gelatin, which preserves the fabric’s crumpled curves and torn edges. This technique captures the passage of time in the form of bends and folds on the canvas. The prototype of this technical method visually is the shroud. The artist creates images with a partial loss of information, a technique that evokes the illusory nature of time and memory, reminding us that history is merely an imprint left behind.

Her practice revolves around themes of corporeality, employing anti-anatomy techniques. This exploration extends to the spiritual and physical realms of human, evolving into reflections on nature and the imagery of the tree.

In recent years, Polina Shcherbyna’s arts have delved into themes of loss and the potential for healing. Drawing on deep ecology, dark vitality, and the body of war, her art examines the sacralization of death, humanity's suffering, and sacrifice in the modern world through the prism of the circle of history and Christianity.

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