The exhibition “Nocturne No. 2: Whimsical” by Heorhii Hahiiev presents painterly images that shape a space of delicate grotesque.

Concept:

A nocturne is an instrumental romantic composition associated with night, melancholic reflection, and dreaming. The number 2 introduces a note of nostalgia — like a return to a theme once heard, now unfolding with greater depth.

At the center of the exhibition are musicians. Voluminous, almost illustrative figures, rendered with refined mastery of oil painting, balance between post-irony and naivety. In this oscillation, a deeper sincerity emerges: complex narratives are conveyed through semi-puppet-like, plastic bodies.

Hahiiev’s figures are not portraits of performers, but rather carriers of rhythm. Their poses sometimes resemble musical scores, interacting like voices in a choir — each movement reshaping the overall sound.

“Nocturne No. 2: Whimsical” is a state in which reality allows for fluctuation, and the image remains open to interpretation. A world where romanticism does not deny complexity, but coexists with it. A space where sensuality, deformation, and music form a unified system — flexible, capricious, yet whole and authentic.

Curated by Ulyana Krucha