Anastasiia Usenko

Anastasiia, a Ukrainian artist from Kyiv presently residing in Sweden, first embarked on her artistic pursuits at the tender age of five, when her mother, a set designer, brought home a large roll of paper so girl could tear off pieces from it and draw freely. She prefers working with large formats and paints on bare fabrics with various textures and colors, eschewing the use of canvas primer. She is known to experiment with materials and often paints on used fabrics. Her work is predominantly figurative and serves as a vehicle for conveying significant messages and contexts.

Anastasiia regards experience as a virtue and highly values it in her artistic practice. She adopts a unique approach when creating her artwork, providing no instructions to her models before they pose. Instead, they assume their pose, and she listens to their personal stories. The resulting work is emotionally charged, evoking a range of sentiments, including sadness, hope, loss, fear, and more.

As an artist, she believes that everyone has a unique story to tell and uses her art to translate those stories. Her models' candid poses and emotions remind viewers that people are capable of more than they realize. Each individual has the right to share their story with the world, and Anastasiia's art provides a powerful means of doing so.