DEAR READER,

 

MY NAME IS DARIA ANTYP. I AM AN ARTIST WHOSE WORK MAINLY REVOLVES AROUND MEMORIES AND THE CONCEPT OF OBLIVION. BEFORE TAKING A LOOK AT MY PORTFOLIO, LET ME GIVE YOU SOME CONTEXT ABOUT ITS APPEARANCE AND THE SEEMINGLY CHAOTIC EMOTIONS PORTRAYED IN IT.

 

I INITIATED THE MAIN PROJECTS SHOWCASED HERE IN 2020, AN EXPLORATION AIMED AT UNDERSTANDING THE MEMORY PHENOMENON AND ITS CULTURAL IMPRINT. THIS EXPLORATION IS DEEPLY CONNECTED TO MY PERSONAL HISTORY. I COME FROM HORLIVKA, DONETSK REGION, UKRAINE, WHICH WAS OCCUPIED IN 2014. MY GOAL WAS TO EXPRESS MEMORIES OF MY LOST HOMETOWN AND CHILDHOOD CITY AND EXAMINE HOW NOSTALGIA AFFECTS OUR PRESENT EXISTENCE. THIS THEME IS RELEVANT TO MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WORLDWIDE WHO HAVE BEEN DISPLACED AND ARE UNCERTAIN ABOUT RETURNING HOME.

 

ON FEBRUARY 24, 2022, ALL MY WORK ABRUPTLY STOPPED. THE REALIZATION THAT IT WASN’T JUST DONETSK AT STAKE FROZE ME IN TIME WITH THE FEAR OF LOSING MY ENTIRE HOME — THE ENTIRE COUNTRY.

 

AFTER A WHILE, ALL MY EFFORTS TURNED INTO A CONFUSING MESS. MY MIND WAS FILLED WITH NEW IDEAS, EMOTIONS, AND THE CONSEQUENCES OF BEING AN IMMIGRANT, WHILE I WAS STILL TRYING TO NAVIGATE THE WORLD AS A NAIVE WOMAN. IN MY SEARCH FOR A PLACE TO BELONG, WHICH WAS OFTEN CONDUCTED FROM THE COMFORT OF MY BED, I EVENTUALLY DECIDED TO CREATE A DIGITAL PORTFOLIO DIARY TO RECORD MY PAST AND FUTURE PURSUITS.

 

DON’T BE SURPRISED THAT THERE IS SO MUCH INCONSISTENCY AND SOMETIMES INCOMPLETENESS. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MEMORY, WE CANNOT AVOID THE CONCEPT OF FORGETTING. BUT WHAT IS CALLED FORGETTING IS NOT ALWAYS BAD — I’D EVEN SAY, IT’S A GENTLE MECHANISM OF OUR MIND TRYING TO PROTECT US AND BRING BALANCE. IT’S THE BRAIN’S WAY OF CLEANSING, MAKING SPACE FOR SOMETHING NEW.

 

I INVITE YOU TO TAKE A LOOK THROUGH THIS PORTFOLIO AS A GLIMPSE INTO THOSE FRAGMENTED MEMORIES — SOMETIMES SHARP, SOMETIMES BLURRY — BUT ALWAYS DEEPLY PERSONAL.

 

SINCERELY,

DARIA