Lada Nakonechna. “Research of Manipulation Systems.” 2009–2021. Interactive object (graphite on cardboard, light)

Job Description

This object is a vivid example of the artist’s work with light as a tool and, partly, a co-author of the piece. Moreover, it involves the viewer, who can turn the light on or off. When the light is on, we see an evenly shaded gray plane inside a contrasting black frame. In the dark, the artist’s true work is revealed to us: her shading of varying intensity, dictated by the corresponding intensity of the light. 

Thus Nakonechna invites the viewer to explore with her a manipulation of light that is both simple and complex. How just one flick of a switch exposes what is hidden or emphasized by an artificial lamp beam; how the artist, through prolonged work with a pencil, works on this exposure, neutralizing the light’s intensity by darkening with graphite. This abstract work refers to the artist’s academic practices of working with light and to the broader question: how an image, especially one displayed in a gallery or museum, shapes our perception and controls our impression and subsequent actions.