Jessie

Iva Ivanova, an artist, and a stage and costume designer


 

Could you describe yourself shortly?

My name is Iva.

I am a stage and costume designer. I would like to describe myself as nostalgic, chaotic and sometimes dramatic, mostly funny ;-)

 

Could you tell me about your artistic practice and the challenges you face in your work?

Working in the field of stage and costume design, performance and drawing, I place value in the personal and intimate story, and use confusion and deconstruction as main tools of development. The exacerbation of first-hand emotions, nostalgia and longing for the unseen connect and create a new fictional genre. It is intuition, not intellect that guides me : an inner dialogue.

The yearning for the lost and abandoned home, the feeling of loneliness and the desire to recall the past, are depicted in the form of a self-portrait, a fantasy image. My art practice examines the blends between trauma and nostalgia, joy and sadness. By merging documentary and fictional elements, I abandon my past and because I can’t accept it, I recreate it.

 

Your Role model

My professor at the Academy of fine arts Vienna- Anna Viebrock. And my friend Robert Gabris.

 

Do you think that artists can act for social change?

Art shouldn't be just a product, but a process for constructive social change. It can define a new social order and encourage people to not just consume art but become active participants. Using artistic practice as a form of resistance or empowerment, artists can preserve or reclaim traditional cultural practices as well reflect certain society issues and involve the community. Going beyond the boundaries of cultural organizations it can reach a wider audience with less affinity, experience and knowledge in the field of art and culture and connect the world of private interests and common good.

 

And are you engaged in a cause

The relation between trauma and drawing has been a subject of my studies and I use the medium drawing in order to bring repressed to the surface. Expressing oneself through a drawing, makes our feelings and ideas tangible and communicates what we sometimes cannot say through words.

“Pure drawing is the material visibility of the invisible”. Alain Badiou, “Drawing”

 

Your favourite netflix series ATM ?

Love on the spectrum


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