GOMA Gallery of Modern Art
25th August – 1st October, 2022
Opening Reception: 25th of August 6pm
Guest Speaker: Max Le Cain
Artist’s Talk: GOMA, 22nd Sept, 1pm
Evgeniya Martrosyan’s new body of work ‘To Ashes’ is a meditaton on mortality, impermanence and loss. The artst draws from the symbolism of fre and ash, materials closely associated with death and destructon, but also leading to a new cycle of creaton. Used family beds, objects which hold memories of life, dreams and struggles, were set on fre and reduced to debris. Charred and fragmented bed carcasses also allude to war, displacement and the afermath of a disaster, coincidentally resonatng with current events.
The work combines sculptural detritus with moving image, developed from the artst’s contnuous experimentaton with the material and visual qualites of fre and ash. As the fre gradually reduces the objects to ash, this formless and featureless substance is actvated again by the caressing artsts hand. The tactle gesture creates an emotonally charged atmosphere, invitng the viewer to refect on the fragility and precariousness of life.
‘The sense of fragility is immediate and hauntng… Ash now becomes pure memory mater, teeming with its own vibrant ghost life.’
Max Le Cain