Vital prism
It seems that chance dominates her and makes her create in a compulsive way. She says she’s in a continuous research and her chromatic ranges show an apparent anarchy that is pleasantly stimulating. Her photography is rawer and it also has a certain old age aura that makes it become a timeless piece of art even they are made in the present days. Time is not important, only her attitude in front life.
What are you looking for through your artistic creation?
I’m defining the place I belong; it’s just a state of mind, I find pieces of it everywhere, and every piece of my work is a little materialized piece of this place.
The mix of so many different techniques makes me think in a very curious personality. Isn’t it?
Well, I think I am. I sometimes afraid I’m not enough curious. Stop being curios means become dead. I see dead people.
Sometimes you use old photos to create your collages. Is it possible to create modernity from the past?
There is no past, no future, just endless space of beauty. I use anything if I feel that’s the way to enter this space. When you feel that the thing you’ve made touches that space even for a little – it’s better than sex you know. No, as good as sex. I’m also deeply in love with old school, yes.
But we can also see some self-portraits that you transform in something new. What’s your relation with your own image?
I feel myself as an observer. So, usually, I’m not interested in images of myself. I don’t have photos of myself at all. I’m making a self-portrait when I want to scream. For me doing something with my image is a process of screaming. My nerves are quite ok, so it doesn’t happen frequently. Maybe, my attitude will change. Tomorrow.
I feel a kind of anarchy in your work or a kind of need to break the rules. Do you think society is too restrictive?
Your upbringing restricts you, not society. Fear restricts you. All the rules I ever wanted to brake were the rules in my own head. I love chaos and randomness. They bring unexpected things. They bring an illusion of inner freedom.
One of your photo series is the one called Space for one where you use to look at the sky through city buildings and trees. Is the space you are trying to capture the symbol of a desired freedom?
All photos from that series were made when I was looking for a place to hide. I just felt better making those pictures. Those buildings were very beautiful, I felt like they felt me. The world around was a fortress from inner vacuum.
Useless youth is your nickname. Are you talking about youth in general or your own youth?
Youth is a great condition. I don’t use it in appropriate way. My youth is quite useless indeed. I like people who know what to do with their youth.
Do you think art is useful?
For what? My art is useless. Or, maybe...wait a minute.
Skimming stones is a photo series focused on gems and rock crystals where you create a dreamy atmosphere again with transformation as a protagonist. Have you an optimistic view about the future?
I’m an optimist at heart, I can do nothing with it. Eventually, everything that happens to me is quite funny and/or stupid. Skimming stones is a name of Boards of Canada track. Listen to Boards of Canada. You’ll get the truth.
Are you an uncut diamond?
Aladdin was an uncut diamond, I’m a prism.
So, the best we can do is to be surprised with an innocent look by the light’s travel through the prism of Natalya Serkova. Let’s trust everything to chance and curiosity.
Interview by Juan Carlos Romero
Photos by Natalya Serkova