The Russian upcoming artist Katerina Belkina just reached a milestone in her career: her photograph, ‘For Lempicka’ was sold for £37,500 at Sotheby’s London as part of the ’20th Century Art – A different perspective’ auction on November 12. The artwork’s participation at the auction was organized by the Budapest-based Faur Zsófi Gallery.
‘For Lempicka’ is part of the artist’s PAINT series, in which she ‘borrowed’ the brushes and eyes of 19th and 20th century painters such as Modigliani, Piacasso and Klimt, just to name a few. In the series, Belkina created a dialogue with these masters, while also recontextualized their works. Belkina’s works can be interpreted as one giant statement of mankind looking for its place in the whole of social and cultural reality. The fact that Belkina nearly always is her own model in the various series she exhibits indicates that she fully identifies with this universal quest. The PAINT series shows that she has remained true to herself as a visual artist and that she has gone on a search for the inspiration of great painters from the past.
Trying to get as close as possible to them, she carefully and meticulously explores the expressive force of her artistic heroes; at the same time, Belkina wishes to challenge her own artistry.
