A journey of a thousand li starts with a single step.
千里之行始於足下。
Laozi, Tao Te Ching (Chapter 64, Line 12)
‘Travel Diary’ is a visual allegory of life’s journey in 11 monumental abstract paintings. Through ‘The Way of the Road’ we take ‘Roads Without Obstacles’ to face the ‘Choice’, we find ourselves ‘Behind the Wall’, and we reach the next ‘Milestone’.
The reserved colour scheme of the canvases is motivated by its internal philosophy. Red is the dominant colour of the series, which the artist uses to convey the condition that he is experiencing during the different stages of his progress. Red is the symbol of movement; it is the pulse, heartbeat, adrenalin, excitement, the human will to live. Black is the deterrent, it denotes obstacles, barriers, walls, those difficulties, which one must overcome in order to grow and become stronger. White is the absence of obstacles, the emptiness, purity, and lightness of being. 
Scribbles have become a stylistic trademark of Vladislav Chenchik’s canvases, alluding to cave paintings and hieroglyphics, the early testimonies of humanity’s figurative thinking. Wave-like and sporadic calligraphic elements, like fragments of manuscripts, point to the subjectivity of lived experience.
“Roads – this is the keyword in the concept behind my works. Roads are a visual metaphor that expresses the dynamics of change in time and space. They symbolize a person’s journey, one’s movement towards set goals, towards one’s dreams, as well as the process of self-improvement and discovery. The process is my foundation, to me it means so much more than the result”, the artist Vladislav Chenchik reveals. “My main motivation in my creative work is the honest depiction of my internal landscape on the canvas, as a record of my experience, both for the viewer and myself. In the early stages of my search for a personal artistic method, I used to write in my diary all the time, scribbling and making sketches. I often make notes next to my preparatory sketches. The handwritten element often holds a hidden meaning of its own that is later revealed on the painted canvas.”
Project curator Myroslava Hartmond notes: “Mark Rothko, who by the early 1950s had invented the ‘multiform’ artwork composed of several blocks of colour, did not consider his works abstract, because they expressed rather concrete thoughts. The greatest Abstract Expressionist was shaped by Jewish, Slavic, and American culture. In the paintings of Vladislav Chenchik we also see evidence of the influence of different cultures alongside an aspiration towards universal questions. In the last few years, he has travelled widely, paying close attention to the pictorial language of different alphabets. The red and black colour scheme is reminiscent of Ukrainian traditional motifs, infused with new energy through the confident brushstrokes of the young master.”
When: November 29 - December 12, daily (11 A.M. - 7 P.M.)
Where: Triptych: Global Arts Workshop (34 Andriyivskyy Uzviz)
Admission: Free
About the artist
Vladislav Chenchik was born on the 14th February 1994 in Fastiv, a city in the Kyiv region. Vladislav studied at the Kyiv International University, Dept. of Journalism (2012–2016), and the National Academy of Government Managerial Staff of Culture and Arts (2010–2012). Since 2016, he is enrolled at the National Academy of Visual Arts and Architecture, Dept. of Monumental and Easel Painting. Participated in numerous international art residencies and congresses. His works are part of private collections in Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Thailand, and the People’s Republic of China. Vladislav Chenchik lives and works in Kyiv. He finds inspiration in British experimental and Ethiopian ethnic jazz.
Photos provided by Triptych.
