Posing in the Garden, 2023

Dasha Pogodina   Best sellers Emerging artists

In "Archive of Happiness: Unlived Chronicles," I craft a visual counter-narrative to my family's untold joy. This painting, "Posing in the Garden," is a heartfelt recreation of the tranquil life that could have been, a life not marred by the sorrow of displacement or the shadow of loss. Here, I imagine a past where my forebears lived in harmony, surrounded by the bloom of their own gardens, untouched by the harsh hand of history. Through this series, I aim to mend the narrative, offering a portrayal of peace and contentment as a tribute to the enduring spirit of my lineage and a defiant stand against the austerity of the past. Series Archive of happiness. Unlived Chronicles This is a way for me to work through the trauma of generations who were deprived of the opportunity to have happy years of childhood youth and maturity throughout the 20th century. My family's photos and stories are full of sadness and pain, unfulfilled dreams and broken destinies. The Soviet government was engaged in the dispossession, and displacement of people, families were forced to abandon their homes. I want to create a false archive in which generations of my family were happy. My task as an artist is to rewrite the script, to give voice and image to what my ancestors dreamed of but could not get. I paint the carefree times that didn't exist, in which they were happy, living in their beautiful rich houses, studying, meeting their love, gathering as a big family for holidays, and whispering each other secrets about suitors. For me it is a way to come to terms with the trauma of generations condemned to survival instead of life, to create a personal image of a future of joy and prosperity, and to show society and others with similar backgrounds that liberation lies not in suffering but in rethinking and strength.