IT

Freeing the unconscious and not fearing her own abysses: these are the intentions behind the painting of Daria Dmytrenko, a Ukrainian artist now based in Venice. We delved with her into her poetics and the reasons behind research that focuses on interiority. 

Daria Dmytrenko was born in 1993 in Ukraine, in Dnipropetrovsk, where she started her education. Between 2012 and 2015, she attended painting courses at the National Academy of Visual Arts and Architecture in Kyiv, and in 2021 she graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice, the city where she still lives and works.
Through her subconscious, Dmytrenko creates free-form compositions that mirror her inner world. Using the oil technique, she realizes mythological figures to bring out her deepest memories.
In addition to her recent solo exhibition Journey to the center of the mind at the Parisian Stems Gallery, in 2022 Dmytrenko participated in several group exhibitions, including Upon a Time at the Eduardo Secci Gallery in Florence and Fluuuuuido at Cassina Projects in Milan. 

AN INTERVIEW WITH DARIA DMYTRENKO 

What led you to become an artist, and what motivated you to take this path?  
There wasn’t a specific moment when I decided to become an artist ‒ it happened very naturally. I began drawing at the age of four thanks to a painting course, then refined my technique through academic training. It was only after arriving in Italy that I discovered my own method and started painting with a liberated mind, free from the constraints of right and
wrong.

In a past interview, you described your works as manifestations of your inner self. Which of them represents you the most and why?  
There is no painting that represents me the most, but I treasure the ones that have allowed me to understand something about myself. Here in my studio, for instance, I keep a small framed piece ‒ it’s a portrait, the head of a faun. It was one of the very first works where I began exploring my subconscious. I keep it close to remind me of that moment.

Do you believe that the subconscious manifested in your paintings can really be understood by the viewer?
All of my paintings are deeply personal, but I believe that anyone can find something in them that reflects their own subconscious. In the end, we’re all human and we all have fears. I’ve met people who saw something familiar in my work and have told me so.

Is there a memory that often resurfaces in your work?
There’s no specific memory, but I’ve noticed that all the figures I paint are partially or completely covered in hair. This recurring trait reflects the monsters I used to imagine and still do. They are always a bit animalistic.

PAINTING ACCORDING TO DARIA DMYTRENKO 

How do you know when a color is the right one?
I try to establish the color palette from the very beginning ‒ it often depends on the mood of the day. But I can always change it. If I return to the studio and the color no longer resonates with me, I repaint everything. Still, I try to stay true to the initial tone. I prefer to take my time and think it through rather than rush.

Have you ever dreamed of one of your paintings?
I’ve never dreamed of one of my paintings specifically, but I often dream of workshops, sometimes with fellow artists. And I do dream of the environments in my paintings ‒ dark, rocky landscapes with forests that always remain a bit mysterious.

Through your art were you able to understand something that you were previously unaware of?
Yes, I didn’t think my childhood and background had shaped me so much. I noticed it through my painting, I see that elements of Slavic mythology often return, creatures that live in those places, superstitions that are passed down from generation to generation and were also told to me as a child. I was scared and wondered what these monsters were like.

How do you choose the titles of your works?
It depends, sometimes the title comes immediately to mind while I am painting, looking at the works, as it did with Maculata or Melancholy Valley. I looked at them and it was immediately clear to me. In other cases, once the process is over, I look at the works and think about them, but I never try to come up with a title, I want it to be natural and remain somewhat vague. If I force it too much, it means that the work does not need a title.

How do you imagine your art evolving in the future?
I will definitely always work with the subconscious, with somewhat anthropomorphic or animal figures, it will always depend on how I feel. I know that the oil technique is mine, I would not change it, but I hope to have the opportunity to work with other materials, for example I would like to create a fresco, or I hope to experiment with larger media.

Sofia Battistelli   

https://www.instagram.com/dmydaria/

Translated with AI