Yulia Pinkusevich, Isorithm IV, 2018, Ink, charcoal, pencil and beeswax on Fabriano Artistico soft press paper.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Yulia Pinkusevich: Rupture of the Mundane Plane
February 11, 2021 through April 2, 2021
(Palo Alto, CA) - Qualia Contemporary Art is pleased to present Rupture of the Mundane Plane by artist Yulia Pinkusevich. Rupture of the Mundane Plane showcases two recent bodies of work on paper from two series: Isorithm Maps and a new body of work entitled the Q-Series. In her evolving practice, Pinkusevich has created a bold, visual language that engages interconnection, musicality, space and materiality to explore the transference of energy over time. Rupture of the Mundane Plane contextualizes this ethos through an arresting juxtaposition of meditation, intuitive spontaneity, and gestural mark making. The exhibition is open to the public from February 11, 2021 through April 2, 2021. The gallery will be hosting a Zoom opening celebration on February 13, at 7:30 pm PST. RSVP is required. To RSVP, please visit http://www.qualiacontemporaryart.com/
The Isorithm series grew out of Pinkusevich’s research on the Cold War. During this research, the artist located a declassified military manual which served as a guide to teach military personnel how to create maps that predict the casualty impact of nuclear air bursts . Pinkusevich was struck “by the immense tension between the elegant geometries and rational calculations of these maps, juxtaposed against the irrational chaos and mass destruction they represent.” The works are made up of a series of red lined grids, overlayed with topography like concentric circles and abstracted marks; all melding together in a seemingly rhythmic dance. The term 'isorhythm” is borrowed from a 13th-century musical phrase used to describe things of the same rhythm. The repetitive mapping quality of the work instantiates the exchange of energy within it, both physically and conceptually. Without knowing the work’s nuclear source, one is still able to sense its buzzing energy, ready to explode with life.
Pinkusevich’s Q-Series began while the artist was in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic. The small, amoebic works are made using a slow meditative process in which the artist places a single ink mark on the paper for every breath she takes. Pinkusevich then connects these marks with fine red pencil lines as a meditation on form, social connection and biological networks. The intimate works follow an internal logic and poses a scientific visual language. Just like a physical body, they have the ability to heal, grow and regenerate a sense of being.
Pinkusevich uses materiality and process in her practice as a way to expand on the interconnectedness and historical aspects often found in her work. Both series in Rupture the Mundane Plane use a preservation technique the artist discovered while working with 12th century illuminated manuscripts, in which natural beeswax was used to seal the drawings and texts. Pinkusevich not only uses beeswax as a way to seal her marks, but it also adds an interesting depth of color and a natural fragrance. All of the materials Pinkusevich uses (charcoal, ink, paper, beeswax), have a primordial feeling to them and physically connect the work to different spaces, times and energy.
The work in Rupture of the Mundane Plane is mathematical, algorithmic, geometric, all of which acts as a set of rules that guides Pinkusevich through her process. Within these limitations, Pinkusevich is able to find metaphysical networks of life, connection, rhythm, emotion and spontaneity.
About Yulia Pinkusevich
Yulia Pinkusevich is an artist and educator born in Kharkov, Ukraine (USSR). Upon the collapse of the Soviet Union, her family fled the eastern bloc as refugees, immigrating to New York City in the 90’s. She holds a Masters of Fine Arts from Stanford University and Bachelors of Fine Arts from Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts, graduating both universities with highest honors. Yulia has exhibited nationally and internationally including site-specific projects executed in Paris, France and Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Presenting an immersive visual environment that stays true to an architectural design methodology is an ongoing pursuit for Pinkusevich. It is ever present in her installations using common materials and found objects, it is how she guides her examination of urban and natural systems. Pinkusevich’s work is in the public collection of the DeYoung Museum, Stanford University, Facebook HQ, Google HQ and the City of Albuquerque. Yulia has been awarded residency grants from Gray Area Arts Foundation, Wildlands, Lucid Arts Foundation, Autodesk Pier 9, Facebook, Recology (San Francisco Dump), Cite des Arts International (Paris), Headlands Center for the Arts, Redux, Goldwell Open Air Museum and The Wurlitzer Foundation. She was also the recipient of The San Francisco Foundations Phelan, Murphy & Cadogan Fellowship in the Fine Arts as well as numerous other awards. Yulia’s work has been widely written about in various publications, including New American Painting, Stanford Magazine, DeYoung Magazine, VICE, The Miami Herald, Dwell, Adbusters, KQED, Rhizome. Yulia has lectured at Stanford University and is currently Associate Professor at Mills College in Oakland California, she lives and creates her work on unceded Ohlone land.
About Qualia Contemporary Art
Located in the heart of downtown Palo Alto, Qualia Contemporary Art is dedicated to showcasing outstanding established and emerging artists working in a variety of media. The gallery is committed to building lasting relationships with artists, collectors, curators, and scholars nationally and internationally, and providing a vital platform for dialogues on contemporary art and culture in the Bay Area and beyond.
Location
328 University Ave
Palo Alto, CA 94301
Gallery Contact
Dacia Xu
650-656-9132
dacia@qualiagallery.com
Media Contact
Lainya Magaña, A&O PR
347 395 4155
lainya@aopublic.com