​A large part of my education was focused on decorativeness, stylization, and the search for the image or metaphor — this deeply shaped my visual language. I've always been less interested in replicating reality, and more drawn to capturing character, emotion, and finding a poetic way to depict what surrounds me.

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The nature of watercolor — with its unpredictability and fluidity — led me to embrace intuitivity and spontaneity in my process. My understanding of color freed me to experiment, letting go of "overthinking" and "planning", and instead shortening the distance between impulse and brushstroke.

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Over the years, I developed a mixed technique — combining watercolor, watercolor pencils, ink, whitewash, and rapidograph — which allowed me to loosen "control" and avoid becoming a prisoner of the process.

In my 2019 solo exhibition in Moscow, I first introduced this technique and the Birds.Characters series. Several works from that period are presented here, alongside new additions created after my move to Portugal.

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Six years separate these two exhibitions — years marked by obstacles, difficulties, and emotional upheaval, especially during my transition to a new country. And yet, quite unexpectedly, my palette shifted. Muted, subdued tones gave way to brighter, warmer colors and bolder combinations.

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During the relocation, I began exploring Portugal through my art — searching for new visual motifs more familiar to Portuguese culture. This is how I began painting fish. And in the Birds series, my beloved crows gave way to peacocks and roosters. Contour and movement are as important to me as color. I pay special attention to the eyes. I'm not painting literal birds or fish — behind each figure is a human presence, a character, an emotion.

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One of my main areas of experimenting in recent years has been working with bouquets. I often created four or five large-scale works from a single flower combination placed in a simple glass vase. Some of these pieces are included in this exhibition. For me, the stems are like roads or paths, while the flowers represent emotions. Flowers accompany us in life’s most meaningful moments — birth, celebration, farewell.

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In contrast to that metaphorical world, I created a series of cat portraits — depicting our two real cats, Lavr and Bublik, who supported us and accompanied us through many countries before finally becoming Portuguese cats.

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The title FLUIDITY brings together the nature of watercolor — where the movement of water and pigment is never entirely under control — and the nature of time, emotion, and the world we inhabit. It is an illusion to think anything is fixed or stable. The universe is constantly moving and changing.