On 5 July, at 19:00, the exhibition “Cult” by photographer Liza Koval opens in the exhibition hall of the Museum of Odesa Modern Art (5 Leontovycha Street). The exhibition will feature works of various genres created over 20 years of her career.

In her works, the author captures moments of accidental harmony, prolonging their life with the help of a lens. “Despite the fact that the concept of the absolute is beyond the human mind, this does not mean that it does not exist and cannot be sought,” explains Lisa Koval. This idea has become a kind of life-affirming personal cult of the artist and is embodied in her work.

The early period is represented by staged street photography. At the same time, the process of post-processing the image was minimised due to the careful construction of the composition during the shooting.

The exhibition will also feature black and white nude photographs. They do not tend to be erotic, but rather refer to the classical aesthetics of ancient sculpture, which is a source of inspiration for the artist.

“Liza Koval’s exhibition was conceived a long time ago. We exhibited some of the works in the parallel programme of the Odesa Biennale, while others will be shown for the first time,” says the curator of the exhibition Tatiana-Margarita Syu.

The title of the exhibition “Cult” refers to the idea of the author’s devotion to her own aesthetic concept. Whether it is a staged photograph, a reportage or a nude, the artist’s main task is to try to embody the idea of beauty in each case. Despite the fact that aesthetic objectives are often not of paramount importance in contemporary art, the cult of beauty has been and remains an important part of culture. Today, the definition of beauty is becoming increasingly blurred. The value of individual differences is replacing the generally accepted ones. Photographer Lisa Koval conducts her own research into these boundaries and offers her own perspective on the topic.