In the new project “isn't white that which does away with darkness?”, created for Lobby.Moscow, Anna Pavlova addresses the themes of aestheticization and museification of the everyday life. The quote in the title belongs to the philosopher L. Wittgenstein and appears in the book by the British director and artist Derek Jarman “Chroma: A Book of Color”.
Anna Pavlova focuses on our physical attraction to the light sources and creates a mesmerizing environment, a collection of artefacts - a stained glass window which transmits light, wall candle holders, a lamp, transparent glasses. The project refers to the images of objects from the times of Peter the Great, the stained-glass grid and the interiors of the Old English Court. Historical and tangible landscapes merge together. Objects have a hypnotising effect, blurring the boundaries between the physical and psychological spaces. The artist seems to collect light in its various manifestations. Thus the familiar becomes the recognisable.
The artist has an acclaimed ritual of creating new works: on one hand - research of museum collections, labels, display methods, on the other – the everyday, which at the first glance might be unsightly. Pavlova poeticises the everyday, draws ones attention to details which often remain out of sight. Her art is close to reality which produced it. Ceramics - alive, bearing traces of the artist's touches, is covered with a white glaze with small splashes of color. According to the artist, color often distracts from the form and the content. Pavlova builds her practice around the material, which becomes an articulate object. The artist thinks in terms of projects at the intersection of artistic, tactile and functional. It is important to hold her objects in ones hands, feeling the touch of the author. In the times of widespread digitalisation, it is important to turn to natural materials which have a therapeutic effect.
