State of the Art: Yulia Iosilzon

Alice Gawthrop, Reader's Digest, March 28, 2024
Painter and ceramicist Yulia Iosilzon talks to Reader's Digest about artistic inspirations, the snail as a metaphor for migration and her solo show at Berntson Bhattacharjee Gallery.
 
Yulia Iosilzon: Snails are a recurring element in my exhibition at Berntson Bhattacharjee Gallery, and that works well with architecture of the space. On the ground floor you see images that explore the snail character, and then downstairs we have created what I call a snail colosseum. Basically it’s a cylindrical, shell-looking space. Upstairs you see the snail images and downstairs you see what’s happening inside the shell.
 
With this show I wanted to explore origins, intimacy and comfort, and the different associations we have with that. I used silk a lot because it’s a sleek material so you can paint on it, and I liked the femininity and theatricality of it.