Information about the work
Evening Boat [Vechirniy Choven] (Canvas, oil, tempera, 1990) and Once Upon a Time (Canvas, oil, tempera, 1988) are two works acquired for the collection of the Sumy Regional Art Museum in 1991. They speak of an infinitely mysterious and daunting world filled with the clash of darkness and light, inhabited by angels, bird-people, and fish. The artist constantly turns to complex symbols and philosophical concepts. His works are recognizable by their singular painterly technique and imagery, intertwined with the depth and temporal flow of Ukrainian ethnoculture. “In his landscape compositions, a striking transformation of naturalistic foundations into a metaphorical structure takes place, expanding the boundaries of mundane perception. Through his landscapes, the artist constructs a general picture of the universe through the indelible trinity of sky, earth, and water. There is something mystical in his approach to landscape depiction—he favors dawns, twilights, and the secrecy of nights,” writes art critic Mykhailo Rashkovetskyi.
The canvas Evening Boat is executed in the landscape genre, using dark tones (blue-black, greenish-gray-lilac) to depict a mysterious Ukrainian summer night. The scene unfolds at night under a full moon. Against a dark blue background stands a planar, stylized profile figure with the head of a crow, positioned in a boat holding oars. The outline of the figure is elongated, with a pointed, beak-like head shape. The posture is slightly stooped and guarded. To the left of the boat, against a black field, rests a fish; above, a window sheds moonlight into the space. To the right stands a blooming plant reaching upward—a symbol of life, growth, renewal, and spiritual development that contrasts with the static, enclosed figure in the boat. The enigmatic “captain” with oars, looking forward, has steered his vessel in the opposite direction.
The artist’s canvases are characterized by symbolism, ambiguity, and a philosophical interpretation of content and narrative. Kabachenko draws upon key motifs in his iconography: fish, the moon, water, trees, the boat, and the raven. The raven possesses multiple symbolic meanings: a bird of prey that lives far from human eyes, its significance varies depending on the context. It is frequently associated with darkness and death, as well as wisdom, foresight, magic, secret knowledge, and premonition. The author grants the viewer the right to choose their own interpretation.