This artwork immediately brings memories about my childhood in Dnipro, Eastern Ukraine. I remember the men in sporty adidas leggings and without shirts (гопнікі), speaking weirdly in heavy jargon. They were the antipodes of the old ladies sitting on the benches, complaining and broadcasting Soviet narratives. The interiors of flats with “eurodesign”, the tacky exteriors of banners and ads — results of the chaos of unregulated trade — those were visual symbols of my childhood. And this artwork creates a perfect memory. It accepts fully the absurdity and chaos that I was born into but instead of dramatising it makes fun of it. It makes me smile. It is a sweat ironic reminder of where I am from without making any predictions about where I am heading to.

His eyes are very intense. They look at me, they pierce through me, they ask me. I feel responsibility to enjoy my life and be grateful for what I have.