Interview. Sofiia Stepanova

Stepanova’s work seeks to expand the boundaries of the body in chaotic, dystopian canvases. She creates images at the intersection of figuration and abstraction, each participating in an ongoing cycle of the concept of transformation. In her exploration of painting as a medium, she embraces chaos by letting melodies and the stream of consciousness guide her through her creative process.

How is your day going? Could you share some activities that fill your daily routine?
When I spend a day in my studio, it usually takes me half a day to find two hours of concentration and start painting. Especially when I start a new project. My Berlin- studio is shared with other amazing artists and friends, and we often like to talk about our projects and, most often, our feelings. It is also located close to the Maybach Canal in Berlin. When it becomes hard to get inspiration facing the canvas, I do not want to force it and would prefer to go for a walk. I go through my photo collection, read and write notes, listen to music, and I like to be surrounded by books on classical painters. Artists such as Goya, Caravaggio, William Blake, and Piero della Francesca inspire my practice.

Can you share a little about your creative process?
To me, painting has always been similar to composing music and sound. Like a composer, I like to add layers, like melodies, to a canvas. I usually start to work from the sound, be it music or noise and melodies, resonating in my head. I work intuitively, layer by layer. Sometimes, a character emerges from the material. I like to develop new characters in my work, but abstraction often wins over figuration. It happens that I have to sacrifice characters to finish a painting.

How did the „Bunny“ series come about? Can you tell me more about it?
The bunnies took shape from an earlier series of purely abstract paintings. As layers of paint would swathe and inlay onto the canvas, the bunny appeared. It is to me a symbol of life’s struggles, and it strangely embodies human existence as an innocent, sleepy, and passive form. The bunny seems to be a character that resonates with the hard times I faced in life and personal sexual and childhood traumas. It is an ongoing series that does not have a definite end.

Making paintings of bunnies has become a personal diary of my state of feelings. However, they do not terrify people, but quite the opposite.

What is your favorite medium to work with?
I mostly enjoy the possibilities offered by oil on canvas. It is my favorite and most familiar medium. But I have always been into sculpture, mostly when I was a student at the academy, so I would like to get back to it soon. I film a lot of videos on my phone that I like to rewatch, making screenshots to capture the action. It usually becomes a big part of the references I use in my paintings. If not the image or the movement captured, then it’s the color or general tone of a photo or a video of an experience I had that gives a general mood.

How does the cultural atmosphere in Berlin impact the themes or messages in your art?
To be honest, I find there is nothing more distracting than the Berlin art scene. Of course, I find inspiration in it because I generally like the chaos that it represents—muddled openings, large social crowds, rather extreme friends—and it’s a fundamental base of my own practice and pictorial world. But to me, the Berlin art scene resonates more with German bureaucracy, as so many young artists struggle here too. It feels like the freedom of the scene here for artists has vanished, shifted, or even died. It cannot be romanticized. I find most inspiration from separate individuals. My friends or people I date. 

Is there a special place you prefer to visit when you need to unwind or reflect?
It’s a tough question, as it depends. Sometimes, I just want to stay at home. Sometimes, I like to take the metro and cry in front of strangers. You know, here, no one cares anyway. But there is one very special place, close to my house in Berlin, that reminds me of the crossroad next to Park Shevchenko in Kyiv. There are a lot of chestnut trees that border the concrete there, and this type of tree is the symbol of my hometown, Kyiv. It’s not the most special place in Berlin, but it floods me with nostalgia. I went for a run one day and passed by this place, and I suddenly completely forgot where I was. As well as Kyiv in general, this was a special place where I could reflect, see my growth, and compare myself now to myself in the past.

What are your plans for 2024?
My plans for 2024 are to go to Kyiv, make a video, and start collaborating with sound producers.

Sofiia Stepanova – www.instagram.com/sofamusatova/