Market
Central Asian Migrants in St. Petersburg
I came upon the migrant theme by chance. In 2005, my friends and I decided to organize an
exhibit about the farmers' market. Since I have always painted from nature, I took my canvas and
easel to the market. There I found myself surrounded by beautiful, cheerful, and loud Georgians.
I was happy. They gave me fruits, devoted poems and songs to me, and carried my easel. One seller called my artistic style "Oh Horror!" Another one hated his portrait so much that I had to run away from the market. One wrote a poem for me. From that moment the atmosphere of the place and the unpredictable reaction of the people became the main part of my art. Later these cheerful and happy people told me about their difficult lives.
At the first glance market series look like still life by Frans Snyders. That it is all about shiny apples and
how beautiful green grapes look near blue plums. But it is not right. "Work at the market" was very
important for me. I communicated with people there and I hope that their energy shows on the
paintings. This is a special topic in Russia today. People who work at the markets today are mostly
illegals from Caucasus surrounded by hostility. This is a different world. These people have interesting,
unconventional lives which brought them to the North Market.