Tadeush Zhakhovskyy

Thank you for viewing my work!
I was born in 1967 in a Polish family in Western Ukraine, in the city of Ternopil and was raised in capital of Ukraine and one of the largest and oldest cities in Eastern Europe, city of Kiev. I have been residing in Poland, Denmark, Holland, Germany and for four years (2004-2008) - in Chicago, USA. Since 2008 I am residing in Kiev-city, Ukraine, with my family.
I have been painting all my life. I studied art at Darnitsa Art School in Kiev where completed a diploma of fine arts. My passion is colorful expressionism, fauvism and abstractionism in fantasy and genre-picture art. Having been thrilled by creation of intense color-filled, bright images I have developed my own technique using pastels.
I am engaged in “Tralfrealism” international fine-artists group acivity. (abbr. from “Transformation of Reality by Art, Love and Fantasy”.)
My paintings adorn the walls of homes and businesses of my friends across the United States, as well as Holland, Germany, Poland and Ukraine.
Please, do not hesitate to e-mail me at tadeush.zhakhovskyy@gmail.com with any questions, comments, or requests!

Tadeush Zhakhovskyy, pastel artist.
Artist statement.
Part 1. My method.

When I am working on a painting, I observe that the space of a painting starts to deflect my initial idea and prompts me to the new and unexpected ways. The painting, in fact, starts managing the process of creating itself and complicating my original idea.

For example, I have started another painting and pictured something. Now I try to grope for further shapes and colors, and then I intend to picture, let's say, a flower. And it happens as this: I've had an idea about how to picture the flower and I begin doing that according to my plan. Then I suddenly see that the painting rejects my idea of a flower, but offers its own idea instead, a kind of flower idea too, but nothing similar to mine.
Here it's clear to me that if I 'stand my ground' about how to draw a flower, it will be more safe and sure for me but it'll be less risky to spoil the painting (using pastel you can't overlay one color with another.) If, however, I draw it 'prompted by the painting' the result will be almost 'at random'.

And then I realize that if I make a drawing 'my way', it will be just the case when the painting will be spoiled! Totally, moreover!
Over time, I repeatedly found that I should draw not 'a flower' but 'the Painting'.
A Painting brings me into a 'Color Dimension'.
My creative approach is to not interfere with this.

Part 2. My basics.

From my perspective, my artworks are not the reflections of any of my everyday emotions, feelings or attitudes.
Being engaged in fine arts for about 30 years, I noticed that the power that gives you creativity can act paradoxically to the inner world of an artist and their sensations of outside world.
I think that Creativity, an Art - is just another shape of Life that exists within us or nearby and it can exist right now, paradoxically to any thoughts, images, feelings and social prejudices.
I think that I convey in my paintings not a something that IS around or within me but rather that is NOT there. And due to the picture it's appearing there.
Before I begin the next painting, I have only some kind of new combined image, most likely, thrown to me by a Creativity who was scampering about here. And now I feel like inner childish desire, a demand: 'I want thi-i-s'!!!

But, a Creativity seems not very concerned about how do I 'transfer into reality' that thrown-to-me-image. I need to puzzle out this image first ('What's that'?!!!) then I need to fit it to the composition of a painting and deal with colors. And, finally, I am to put myself together, I am to switch off the outside world and to make my way again through this, familiar to every artist, difficult, complicated and weird process of making a painting.
And in the end, I confess I don't understand sometimes - why it's pictured this way?
But I am fairly sure of the mood which brought the painting on and which, I dare to hope, is attached to the painting.
A mood is innate to the image - that's what fine art all about to me.


LIST OF EXHIBITIONS.

INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS:

2011 – Prize winner in 'ST. PETERSBURG ART WEEK ’Spring - 2011', 'Experimental graphics professional contest'. 2011 - International Exhibition & Competition. 'ST. PETERSBURG ART WEEK ’Spring - 2011', exhibition center of St. Petersburg Union of Artists, St. Petersburg, Russia.
2011 – Participant of International Exhibition 'SLAVIC ART DAYS IN BERLIN' as a part of 'GERMAN ART WEEK‘ Winter - 2010', Berlin, Germany.
2010 – First Prize winner in 'UKRAINIAN ART WEEK ’Fall - 2010', first place in 'Avantgarde & Experimental painting professional contest', with 'Smooth Jazz' and “Chicago, 4 p.m.” paintings. 2010 - International Exhibition & Competition 'UKRAINIAN ART WEEK ’Fall - 2010', Museum of Contemporary Art of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine.
2009 - Prize winner in 'UKRAINIAN ART WEEK ’2009', by international jury selection in 'Avantgarde painting professional contest', with 'Violinist' painting. 2009 - International Exhibition & Competition 'UKRAINIAN ART WEEK ’2009', exhibition center of National Union of Artists of Ukraine, Kiev, Ukraine.
2007 - Magnificent Mile Art Festival, Chicago, Illinois, USA
2006 - Evanston Lakeshore Arts Festival, Evanston, Illinois, USA
2005 - Belmont Arts and Music Fest, Roscoe Village, Chicago, Illinois, USA
2004 - Ukrainian Village Fest, Chicago, Illinois, USA

SOLO EXHIBITIONS:

2011 - «Exhilaration.», «Wunjo-Art» Gallery, Kiev, Ukraine.
2010 - «Welcome to «Color Dimension!», «Wunjo-Art» Gallery, Kiev, Ukraine.
2003 - 'TadikArt event at the Ranch', Saint Jo, Texas, USA
2003 - 'TadikArt event at Kuman's', Boston, Massachusetts, USA

ALL-UKRAINIAN EXHIBITIONS:

1983 - Participant of Republican Exhibition, Kyiv, Ukraine.

OTHER ART RELATED ACTIVITIES:

1987 - Design & implementation of Students Cafe interior at Welding faculty building of Kyiv Politechnical Institute, Ukraine.

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