“Tale of the two suns” , 2020, oil, gilding foil and fried egg on linen
Images courtesy of 15 Orient Gallery, NY
Beady eyes peer out from grimy, disintegrating darkness in Stanislava Kovalcikova’s Imaga,the artist’s first solo show in New York at Orient 15.There’s a sense of stench to these paintings, as though the works on view are in a state of decomposition. Spending two to five years on each painting, Kovalcikova has spoken to a fungus-like quality to her work, smudging away layers to reveal textures and feelings resurfacing from the underneath.
Kovalcikova says a painter searches for the things that stick to the back of our eyelids. There’s an unavoidable presence we can’t seem to shake, like the dirt under our fingernails. Vivid expressions emerge in Kovalcikova‘s signature hues of brown, medieval yellow, red oxide. Imaga is Kovalcikova’s reckoning with a collective shadow self – we’re confronted with morally deficient, feral faced characters in her imaginary scenes. The effect is haunting, lecherous and exciting. – Claire Milbrath
“Vogeldieb”, 2021, oil, gilding foil, bird claw and ink on canvas, detail
“Imaga”, 2021, oil on canvas
“Geisterfahrer” , 2021, oil, ink and crayon on linen, diptych
“Illness of morning”, 2020, oil and gilding foil on linen
“Foxtail”, 2021, oil, foil and found object on linen
Artwork by Stanislava Kovalcikova. 15 Orient Gallery, Brooklyn, NY.
Stanislava Kovalcikova’s Imaga
“Tale of the two suns” , 2020, oil, gilding foil and fried egg on linen
Images courtesy of 15 Orient Gallery, NY
Beady eyes peer out from grimy, disintegrating darkness in Stanislava Kovalcikova’s Imaga, the artist’s first solo show in New York at Orient 15. There’s a sense of stench to these paintings, as though the works on view are in a state of decomposition. Spending two to five years on each painting, Kovalcikova has spoken to a fungus-like quality to her work, smudging away layers to reveal textures and feelings resurfacing from the underneath.
Kovalcikova says a painter searches for the things that stick to the back of our eyelids. There’s an unavoidable presence we can’t seem to shake, like the dirt under our fingernails. Vivid expressions emerge in Kovalcikova‘s signature hues of brown, medieval yellow, red oxide. Imaga is Kovalcikova’s reckoning with a collective shadow self – we’re confronted with morally deficient, feral faced characters in her imaginary scenes. The effect is haunting, lecherous and exciting. – Claire Milbrath
“Vogeldieb”, 2021, oil, gilding foil, bird claw and ink on canvas, detail
“Imaga”, 2021, oil on canvas
“Geisterfahrer” , 2021, oil, ink and crayon on linen, diptych
“Illness of morning”, 2020, oil and gilding foil on linen
“Foxtail”, 2021, oil, foil and found object on linen
Artwork by Stanislava Kovalcikova. 15 Orient Gallery, Brooklyn, NY.
“Le Chat Fâché” , 2020, oil on canvas
“Notre Dame”, 2021, oil, charcoal, hair on canvas