Artist Statement

My name is Anastasia Lukomskaya, I am a visual artist and poet from Moscow, currently living and working in Abu Dhabi. In my artistic practice, I explore human consciousness, the nature of fear and freedom, and the mind of a person living in a totalitarian state. Many of my projects are related to observing animals - it helps me to understand the nature of human behavior better. In my works, I often reflect on sensitive topics, because I do not separate my artistic practice from my civic position.

I work with such media as conceptual photography, video art, performance art, painting, actionism, poetic text. Photography and video allow me to express difficult narratives with simple non-verbal language, concentrating them in a clear image or artistic gesture. In actionism, I am attracted by the drive that arises when the idea of an upcoming performance becomes stronger than the risk of being caught by police. Poetry is what I have been doing all my life, it is a means for honest conversation with myself and finding answers to the most important questions.

There are things that I am absolutely not ready to accept in this world. It is violence, compulsion, lies, sameness and impersonality. I like looking inside people in order to understand what makes them the way they are. Cognitive distortions, chthonic creatures, rational and metaphysical explanations that can be expressed through the images and metaphors. It's a dark labyrinth from which you need to find a way out.