Globetrotter

Client email: “I found your profile via Instagram and I think you're the artist I've been looking for to do my next tattoo! I have been thinking about this for years and now feels like the right time. 

I'm looking for something on my shoulder blade inspired by El Lissitzky's 'Figurines' series, in particular number 5 - Globetrotter (through time)

I first saw this image in an exhibition on the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution in 2017. Someone who meant a lot to me gave me a print of it at the time. Since then I have spent the vast majority of my free time as a revolutionary and socialist activist and studied the history of the Russian revolution and the international socialist movement very intensively, and continue to do so.

For me suprematist art represents the liberatory potential of revolution, a desire for transformation in form and representation and therefore in consciousness. Historically it recalls the period of post-revolutionary Russia which encouraged the flourishing of the avant-garde and new and transgressive modes of thought without any state interference, before the transition to Stalinist socialist realism and the suppression of democracy and independent social organisation. 

I love the direct association with internationalism, which for me is a driving force of my politics, historical progress through time, as well as a certain association with my own international history. I moved countries many times in my youth, first from an ex-Soviet country, then to many places in the US, then to the UK. For a long time I was obsessed with my fractured cultural identity and struggled to find a sense of place and home. It was only when I found a movement which could explain the origins of nationalism and give me something bigger to fight for that I felt I had found a sense of place which was not reliant on geography but rather on the constant struggle for liberation from exploitation and oppression. That changed everything for me and I now feel I could have clarity of purpose anywhere in the world.”

Me: In response to my client's vision for her tattoo, I have created a geometric minimal artwork that draws inspiration from El Lissitzky's 'Figurines' series, particularly the piece known as "Globetrotter (through time). This design reflects her deep connection to the themes of internationalism and revolutionary potential, which she articulated in her email. The artwork features a form that opens outward, embodying the transformative spirit she seeks, while adhering to her specified colour palette of black and red. By integrating elements of Lissitzky's aesthetic, I aim to capture the essence of her journey through cultural identity and activism, creating a piece that resonates with her personal narrative and the historical significance of suprematist art. I look forward to collaborating with her to bring this meaningful concept to life.