The one who listens to fire (2019) by Zoryana Pochynayko - subjektiv.art
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Zoryana Pochynayko
Artist from Ukraine
Zoryana Pochynayko is a Ukrainian visual artist, theatre maker and composer whose practice explores the boundaries between the corporeal, the mythical and the subconscious. Working primarily with painting, performance, sound and moving image, she creates hybrid worlds where ancient archetypes encounter contemporary anxieties and fragmented realities.
Her visual practice is rooted in an intuitive and embodied approach. Drawing on mythology, ritual, Butoh, folk traditions and dream imagery, she investigates transformation, identity, vulnerability and the unstable boundary between human and non-human. Her paintings often emerge as visceral, enigmatic figures and landscapes that seem to exist somewhere between a dream, a ritual and a distorted memory.
Alongside her visual art practice, she is the founder and artistic director of Zhivago Independent Theatre and the founder of the experimental music project MRYAKA. Her interdisciplinary work frequently brings together image, sou
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Zoryana Pochynayko
Artist from Ukraine
Zoryana Pochynayko is a Ukrainian visual artist, theatre maker and composer whose practice explores the boundaries between the corporeal, the mythical and the subconscious. Working primarily with painting, performance, sound and moving image, she creates hybrid worlds where ancient archetypes encounter contemporary anxieties and fragmented realities.
Her visual practice is rooted in an intuitive and embodied approach. Drawing on mythology, ritual, Butoh, folk traditions and dream imagery, she investigates transformation, identity, vulnerability and the unstable boundary between human and non-human. Her paintings often emerge as visceral, enigmatic figures and landscapes that seem to exist somewhere between a dream, a ritual and a distorted memory.
Alongside her visual art practice, she is the founder and artistic director of Zhivago Independent Theatre and the founder of the experimental music project MRYAKA. Her interdisciplinary work frequently brings together image, sou
Where were you transported by this artwork?
Contribute your perspective to the community & earn rewards. Leave your reflection below.
"The One Who Listens to Fire" explores the profound image of a deity who engages in the act of creation while weeping simultaneously. The tears, striking and visceral, represent an overwhelming compassion for the world and the inherent sorrow of existence. The deity's garments subtly evoke Buddhist aesthetics, grounding the figure in themes of enlightenment, universal empathy, and quiet endurance.
Yet, in the face of this profound worldly grief, the act of creation remains unbroken. The vibrant flame held—and listened to—by the deity symbolizes this relentless generative force. The artwork embodies a deeply philosophical paradox: the realization that the world is filled with suffering, but the divine impulse to create, bring forth light, and sustain life continues relentlessly regardless.
Zoryana Pochynayko is a Ukrainian visual artist, theatre maker and composer whose practice explores the boundaries between the corporeal, the mythical and the subconscious. Working primarily with painting, performance, sound and moving image, she creates hybrid worlds where ancient archetypes encounter contemporary anxieties and fragmented realities.
Her visual practice is rooted in an intuitive and embodied approach. Drawing on mythology, ritual, Butoh, folk traditions and dream imagery, she investigates transformation, identity, vulnerability and the unstable boundary between human and non-human. Her paintings often emerge as visceral, enigmatic figures and landscapes that seem to exist somewhere between a dream, a ritual and a distorted memory.
Alongside her visual art practice, she is the founder and artistic director of Zhivago Independent Theatre and the founder of the experimental music project MRYAKA. Her interdisciplinary work frequently brings together image, sou
