OLEKSII GNIEVYSHEV

Oleksii Gnievyshev Art is like the pleasant sound of a violin coming from an eastern region of Europe, enlightening everyone with notes of love, spontaneous emotions, and beautiful sceneries buried in our dreams.

Actually, it’s very difficult for us to write a review about this artist because Oleksii Gnievyshev is a Ukrainian. We feel terribly sorry to begin the first review of the year thinking that actually a person like this great artist is suffering for what’s happening; in fact, right now, close to where we live in Europe, there is a war, a revolting war started by a butcher who is sacrificing the innocent lives of millions of Ukrainian like Oleksii Gnievyshev. Yes, we’re talking about Vladimir Putin, and we’re not afraid to point our fingers at him and say loudly that this man is a butcher, a killer, a heartless person, and an orc sent from hell to destroy one of Europe’s most magnificent countries, our lives, and, above all, the magnificence of Ukraine, a country that we’ve felt as our home and its people as our brothers and sisters since the beginning of this war. Here at HEL MORT®, we are people from all over Europe, thus as previously stated, we all see this conflict as OUR war, a war that is disrupting our lives and our dream of a united Europe free of bloodshed. But, because to people like Oleksii Gnievyshev, we may remember that, beyond this curtain of the Ukrainian War, there is always hope. Hope hidden behind the ruins of bombed-out cities, hope hidden behind all the girls and women raped by monsters we don’t want to call soldiers, hope hidden behind genocides and mass graves, hope, real pure hope that shows us that there is always light behind the darkness. This light is Oleksii Gnievyshev and his art. It’s extremely easy to be an artist when everything is fine and your country is having a good time, but consider the life of Oleksii Gnievyshev and all the artists in Ukraine like him for a second. Can you get the will to pick up a brush and begin a painting if you know your family is dead, in danger, and your country has been annihilated? Can you find the energy to make music or talk about the joys of life while thinking about the war? We believe that only a few people can do it, that many people feel obligated to pick up a gun and go to battle in order to defend their country and other people’s lives, and that only a few of them have chosen to go against their inherent instincts and continue to create art. And, in our perspective, we value all of the Ukrainian troops who fight for their life every day, but we also value Oleksii Gnievyshev and those like him twice as much because they are also fighting, although in a different way. They are demonstrating to the world that the Ukrainian war cannot be forgotten, that it cannot be a sad news simply read in front of your coffee in the morning or avoided because it is a terrible subject. Oleksii Gnievyshev and other people are saying: We’re still here, this situation is still going on, do something, don’t forget about us! And in order to do so, they are demonstrating to the world that behind these stories of weapons, missiles, and genocides there are people, real people like us and you, with sentiments, true feelings, dreams, love, and hate, and they are demonstrating this to the world through their Art. Art is more than just beauty; it is also a statement to the world, and Oleksii Gnievyshev and other courageous Ukrainian artists are expressing this statement to everyone. And the message is clear: Ukraine is still alive, his heart is pounding stronger than ever, and no one, Russian or otherwise, can stop it. This message is anti-death, like a true puch given by life to death to prove who is the stronger opponent in this war. And by this war, we don’t simply mean the Ukraine War, but something more philosophical; we’re talking about the constant battle between life and death, beauty and horror, winter and spring, thoughts and energy that pervade the cosmos. Something comparable to a Ying Yang who likes to communicate with us through the incarnation of certain persons. And Oleksii Gnievyshev is one of these exceptional persons because you can immediately discover this spiritual challenge in all of his artworks, something that combines the inner tranquilly of a Samurai and far eastern philosophies with the most wild features of nature. Women who represent poetry are placed with animals who represent the untamed side of things. The tiger’s terrible eyes are close to the brilliant eyes of an immaculate virgin, who is similar to the saints of the old beautiful churches. Salvation and Ferocity, looking at each other and attempting to find the proper balance to make this existence more genuine than ever. That is the main reason Oleksii Gnievyshev was chosen as the first artist to be reviewed for 2023; he is not only an artist but also a spiritual teacher to show us that even when the darkness comes and everything is pitch black, there is always the vast spiritual light of someone special that is showing us his hand and turning us on to find the light. This is the power of Oleksii Gnievyshev’s art, and all art in the world: to be a light in the darkness.

Slava Ukraini.