17/01/22
Interview with Katya Kvasova
Katya Kvasova (b1980, Riga, Latvia) makes portraits of women. They are not necessarily portraits of the individual sitters, but rather capture their emotions – emotions that Kvasova must, herself, be able to relate to while creating the work – and a sense of the female experience, with its power and its vulnerability, as a whole. Most recently, and for the works on display in Hands are for Touching, her first UK solo institutional exhibition at the Saddleworth Gallery and Museum, she has been focusing on body language and, specifically, hands, for all that they can carry and convey.
Kvasova’s personal history feeds into her work, too, with one series in particular, Bloodline, drawing from old photographs of her mother, who died when Kvasova was just 12. This interest in capturing the aesthetic of photography, and of letting “the light eat the image”, is key to her style, which comprises a layering of graphite powder and translucent colour, to trap images and create a hazy sense of mystery.
In this Zoom interview for Studio International, Kvasova talks about her process, her background and her current passion (and necessity) for curating.
Read the full interview here