Art project CONTRA-POST

CONTRAPOST (Italian contrapposto - “opposite”, from Latin contra - “against” and postis - “pillar, abutment”) is one of the methods of shaping, which consists in the contrasting arrangement of masses, volumes balanced relative to the axis of symmetry, which creates a feeling of dynamic equilibrium. The counterpost, invented by Polyclet, has been used in sculpture from the period of the early classics, experiencing periods of oblivion and a surge of interest in different eras, developing and filling with new meanings, flowing from sculpture to other forms of art. Contrapost is one of the main techniques that an artist must master within the framework of the academic education system.

The goal of the project is to actualize the concept of counterpost, prompting participants to rethink this traditional professional artistic technique, expanding its scope, transferring contrasting contrasts from volumetric and spatial relationships to the graphic plane, to technical techniques, to semantic filling…

The project involves 11 artists from Tatarstan, who represent different age and regional groups: the middle and young generation of artists, the capital of the republic - Kazan and a large regional center - Naberezhnye Chelny. Each of the artists, while remaining in a comfortable area of personal artistic addictions, revealed in his counterpost the meaning that was close to him, his dual groups of contrasting contrasts, and his own decision to find their dynamic balance. The curator of the project and mentor of young artists Alexander Artamonov, with the characteristic edification of him, combines the didactics of historical artifacts with the play of forms, rhythms and textures, involving the viewer in the dramaturgy of plane-spatial constructions that follow the constructive scheme of classical counterpost. Vera Karaseva explores the counterpost at the level of pure form and, in search of equilibrium, decomposes the plastic movement into structural components. Irina Antonova transfers counterpost to the mental level, contrasting the earthly and heavenly, trying to present this eternal dualism in its dynamic development. Vladislav Baranov applies a counterpost to calligraphy, Arabic and Cyrillic, exploring the processes of interaction of harmony and chaos. Through the opposition of multidirectional movement, the interpenetration and opposition of black and white, he explores the nature of Good and Evil, the continuous struggle and compromise between which are the essence of Being.

Young authors using counterposts consider such diverse phenomena as the pangs of creativity (Aigul Munirova), the cycle of life and death (Rushaniya Shaikhutdinova), the contradictions of urbanism (Regina Iksanova), the greatness of Nature (Regina Mavrina), find the original interpretation of "ancient counterpost" in applied to a human figure, referring to the techniques of collage thinking (Ekaterina Renkova-Semina).

All works are made in a variety of graphic techniques, both original (ink, pen, brush) and print - linocut, collagraph, etching, dry needle, silk-screen printing, as well as all kinds of combinations, trying to find new expressive possibilities in their unusual combinations.

For the curator of the exhibition, it is of great interest to see how European artists perceive the ancient tradition that reigned in European art for centuries, and today it is actively being squeezed out of both the artistic consciousness and the educational process. Therefore, European artists were invited to participate in the exhibition - Roberto Gianinetti, Danilo Ferrero, Chiara Giorgetti from Italy, Walter Rindon from Poland. And while in the works of the Pole Rindon, the ancient tradition is present as a quote, like a kind of tuning fork for a work, then in the works of Italian graphic artists the counterpost is present only as a formal device, understood very broadly and giving interesting results, most likely related to the field of graphic design.

After Moscow, the exhibition will be shown in Kazan, Naberezhnye Chelny, Saratov and Vercelli (Italy).

Organizers: Creative Union of Artists of Russia, Volga branch of the Russian Academy of Arts, Experimental creative workshops (graphic laboratory).

Curator: Alexander Artamonov (Kazan), Honorary Member of the Russian Academy of Arts, Honored Artist of the Republic of Tajikistan.