Stas Korolov | Exhibition at the 16th Nidbach Series

Stas Korolov’s works cover a wide range of subjects – self portraits, portraits of his friends, still-lifes and landscapes. This variety may be understood by his interest in creating an image and developing it with different methods. Often, the painting is precise, slow, multi-layered with a richness of colors. Occasionally the paintings are quick, mainly emphasizing the coarse brushstrokes which reflect a secure hand. Sometimes it is a precise photograph in the criminological tradition, sometimes it is a snapshot of a situation and sometimes, simple and straightforward documentation of a performance-like action. Stas Korolov stretches and examines the possibilities of expression and the ability of self representation and representing the artist’s ideological space. There are no social-political manifestos, only honesty in the name of authenticity, which is in itself the origin of social and political antagonism. In many of the self portraits, he dresses-up and wears another persona – feminine, heterogenic, violent, rude, foolish and more. All of them are identity fragments composing the subjective. It is possible to understand other works of Korolov in the same way – portraits of friends, as well as images of a place, revealing his sociological and psychological environment. However, the sociological discussion isn’t judgmental and comes from a place of passion, acceptance and Eros.