Subsculpture: Solo Exhibition of Alexandra Khudyakova at the Russian Academy of Arts

Dates: June 6 – July 2, 2017
Venue: Russian Academy of Arts
            21 Prechistenka street, Moscow

The Russian Academy of Arts presents a solo show of the Academician of the Russian Academy of Arts Alexandra Khudyakova entitled “Subculture”. Alexandra Khudyakova is a recognized master of art dolls. Her solo shows were highly appreciated in Russia and many other countries. The works by Alexandra Khudyakova are in collections of the Museum of the History of Moscow including her twelve unique art dolls “The Moscow Elite”, as well as in private collections in Russia, Italy, Germany, the United States, Israel.

Alexandra Khudyakova is a member of the Association of Artists-Doll Makers of the Moscow Union of Artists, member of the International Creative Artists’ Union of Russia, curator of the projects DOLLART.RU  and ART DOLL,  a holder of the Gold Medal of the Russian Academy of Arts, Medals of the Moscow Union of Artists and the International Creative Artists’ Union. Alexandra Khydyakova, born in Moscow in 1970, is a graduate S. Stroganov Moscow State University for Arts and Industry, the art doll was a theme of her diploma work and became her true vocation.  

The art doll is one of the oldest phenomena of the world culture. The art of the author’s art dolls originated in Russia in the late 20th century among professional artists has obtained a special development. Painters, sculptors, designers, cinema and theater artists, decorators have found in art dolls a possibility of a unique artistic language. Alexandra Khudyakova is far from understanding the doll as a mannequin for demonstration of costumes. Each of her works is a new image, new character, new story. Her main interest lies in the “personality” of the doll she is creating. The idea dictates the form, material, eternal attributes, pose, costume, hairstyle, accessories. Porcelain, embroidery, beads, pearls, glass beads, rhinestones, shining chains and flops of precious fabrics are all elements of a strict pattern akin to dresses of noble ladies in the portraits of Northern Renaissance. In the artist’s works we can often see her reference to the famous sculpture of a little ballet dancer by Edgar Degas, the latter is not accidental and is important for the author’s artistic position.  
Using various types of plastic (cernit, puppen-fimo, Flumo)  Alexandra Khudyakova prefers porcelain considering it a precious material similar to wood and stone. She is in a perpetual creative search, actively experiments using new techniques, media and technologies. She was one of the first in Russia to create hinged dolls according to the Japanese technology and to use metalized porcelain in doll production (series “Reflexions” on the topics of Konstantin Khudyakov). The effect of a mirror metallization makes the doll look like a sculpture while her playful nature is returned by the hinge mechanism.

Alexandra Khudyakova says about her art style: “The art of the author’s doll is a synthetic art not only in terms of combining different materials, techniques and crafts but also in the game with styles. All that helps to implement the image conceived by the author is used without any regard to accepted limits and rules”. The Renaissance, the Orient, art deco – a bizarre mixture of associations, the author’s imagination result in fabulous images of her works.





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