Timothy Karaffa-Korbut "Anthropos" Automatic translate

The Moscow Museum of Modern Art, with the support of Kupol Gallery, presents the exhibition Anthropos by Timofey Karaff-Korbut. In his new project, the artist returns the viewer to the two-dimensional world of an archetypal worldview based on several principles: early childhood, early Christianity and the primitive world.

Like primitivist artists, Caraffa-Corburt refers to images of exotic animals, characters of children’s fairy tales and ethnic groups in the early stages of civilization. At first glance, the strongest relationship of Caraff-Korbut’s work can be traced in his ties with Henri Rousseau. Like the great French artist, Timothy Karaffa-Korbut pursues the goal of conveying the naive naturalism of real life objects on his canvases.

The dramatic effect of the canvases is achieved due to the special central location of the main characters of the paintings in their confrontation or in meditative observation of the life of wild animals. Timofey’s works are based on childhood memories and motifs of the author’s own children’s drawings. The artist deliberately uses the art forms of children’s drawings, folk art, rock art, exotic cultures, devoid of sociality and politics.

The works presented at the Anthropos exhibition were created after 2008, when the artist came to his own style of ARTLESS. At first glance, the paintings offered for viewing can be divided into two large areas - the image of saints and drawings of animals. But this division is misleading, since the zoomorphic images echo the images of biblical characters in the space of the exhibition.

The logic of the exposition’s narrative suggests starting from the images of Adam and Eve and the animals around them in the Garden of Eden. Then follow the fall of man into the realm of temptation and find yourself in the space of the struggle between good and evil, filled with images of frightening animals fighting each other for existence. The expressive images of wild animals are complemented by the faces of saints, just as in the Bible suffering is balanced by humility. At the same time, the exhibition presents unique lightboxes and a series of graphic works dedicated to biblical stories and hagiographic images.

About the artist:

Timofey Karaffa-Korbut (b. 1975, Moscow) is an artist, from 1985 to 1993 he studied at the Moscow Art School. Tomsky at the MGAHI them. V. I. Surikov. From 1993 to 1998 he studied at RAZhViZ. From 1999 to 2002 he studied at the Moscow State Academic Art Institute. V. I. Surikov, defended his diploma in the workshop of P. F. Nikonov. 2003 – 2004 Studied at IPSI (Institute for Contemporary Art Problems).

About Kupol Gallery:

The gallery specializes in 20th and 21st century art. Over the years, the Kupol Gallery team has managed to hold more than 20 exhibitions, as well as to bring to life several projects in collaboration with museum institutions in Russia.