Information about the work
The work Premonition [Peredchuttya] (masonite, mixed media, 1991; acquired by the Khmelnytskyi Regional Art Museum collection from the author in 1994) resonates with the disorientation felt by segments of society facing unknown, fateful transformations in our country at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s. The composition is tightly framed and somewhat cinematic, resembling a close-up in a strange arthouse film. Several faces emerge from a street crowd; despite maximum generalization, they are recognizable as young men and women. These are not “the masses” or a faceless mob, but distinct individuals. The concise color scheme and semi-abstract brushwork naturally unify their specific external features. Yet, for the artist, exact portraiture or psychological likeness to real people is not the goal. Isaiev deliberately refrains from projecting a personal stance, remaining an outside observer—he “broadcasts” the prevailing mood of a specific segment of society at a specific historical juncture, rendering the state of premonition palpable.
The canvas, featuring close-up faces with softly delineated eye sockets emerging from a predominantly white monochrome, evokes the moment of inception for something new and long-awaited—yet unspeakably unsettling because of its unknown nature. Reflecting on this period, Andrii Isaiev notes: “Youth! I had just graduated from Grekovka back then, and everything lay ahead. There was a premonition of something new and promising. But there were also anxious moods.”
Hardboard, mixed media. 90.5 × 101
