Nina Maksymova’s personal exhibit is on display at the Kroky... na... zustrich (Steps toward Encounter) Art Gallery. She is a Kyiv graphic artist and the exposition is titled Lyrical Line. Indeed, her paintings are amazingly charming, poetic, romantic, owing primarily to the artist’s line — flexible, graceful, and precise. The plots stem from countless sources, yet the Bible is the author’s favorite, along with the Arthurian legends, including independent works illustrating the story of Tristan and Isolde (The Annunciation, Shulamite, and Necklace). Maksymova’s canvases are not so much precise illustrations as they are fantasies on a given subject. This is precisely why many of her works are not only inherently anonymous, but also present extremely flexible subjects inviting a variety of interpretations. Remarkably, all would be correct (Sunset, Venice, and Head in the Clouds). As always, Maksymova concentrates on mood and atmosphere, rather than on the subject matter.
