Text: Alexandra Orlova
27/05/2022

A carousel ride is one of the most vivid childhood memories for many people worldwide. This magical feeling, when for just a few moments you are being transferred from the real-life world into a fairy tale where everything seems different and unique, is familiar to many of us. But how to stick with this emotion when you grow up? Elizaveta Lavrenteva tries to answer this question in her "Carrousel" piece.

The artist shot the moment when the attraction was on and had visitors. She gives us a glimpse of those happy moments many of us experience on those family days out. The feeling of joy and happiness is well-read in this black-and-white shot.

However, if we focus on the monochromatic agenda in visual art, we will find a lot of it in photography and, as a matter of fact, post-digital art. This notice is not a rule, but sometimes it lies right on the top.

Irish artist Aaron Smyth often discolors or uses only one color in his pieces. It can be a graphic work or a 3D sculpture – all of it will be monochromatic. Smyth's manner of work is close to an academic one. Still, how he treats his graphic pieces or works with 3D sculpture demonstrates how differently one artist can manipulate with an intentionally reduced palette.

In his Haxon sculpture, the bright red refers to when the Holy Inquisition was in bloom. This way, the artist demonstrates an understandable visual code to his viewer. Since Haxon has been produced with the help of digital software, the artist tries to create a time bridge connecting Medieval tragedy with today's social witch hunts that reoccur occasionally.

So, do all artists need to work with rebellion colors? Possibly not. Not everyone can handle this complex agenda, and not all need to. As you have already read above, some artists don't even need to use a rich palette to produce a powerful message.