Tell me about your origin and where are you based?
I was born and raised in Almaty, Kazakhstan. My parents still live in Kazakhstan, it’s just me who’s roaming around the world. I spent many years studying Arts in Europe, now I’m in process of finding a new place to stay and work.
What are your views about women in the modern society?
I honestly think we right now are at a not-so-beneficial transitional point socially and economically. We’re at a point where yes, we are mostly free to work and choose our destiny and travel(still not all women have these luxuries). But we are still expected to be primary caretakers as well as to fit into all the crazy standards, all while also doing most of the emotional labor. So it’s like, we have progressed, a lot, but the world doesn't seem to quite keep up and so there’s a lot of pressure on women. But it’s part of the progress, of course. I have high hopes for future generations.
What do you think of the influence of social media, are you leaning towards a positive or negative view about it
It’s a tricky question to me, because I keep changing my opinion on it. Today I love SM and its possibilities, tomorrow I hate it with all my heart. I feel like we all need to regulate how much we use it and how we allow it to influence us. It’s definitely power. It’s like fire, there’s always danger if it’s in the wrong hands.
What are the main messages are you covering lately through your art?
I like to think of art as a never-ending process of self-reflection. Maybe not even mental, but emotional. There is a lot of the past, but seen through a lens of the present. There has been a lot of culture in my past. Rituals, the search of identity, interesting family dynamics, all that fascinate me when I think of how unique the central asian experience is. After living abroad, you lose some things, of course, but then there are other things, very curious perspectives that you gain as an outsider. I think all art has one message that unifies it all: it’s an “I exist and I see and I remember” moment. And some of those moments happen to be less familiar than the others on the big scene, and that’s where my work stands.
What would you advice to the young artists?
I am a young artist myself, so probably I will look back at this advice in the future and laugh at myself. Currently I think it’s important to be inventive and curious. But not in an adult-snobbish way. You have to be somewhat deaf to the outer noises and very, very courageous. Like a kid. That helps a lot.