The inspiration for this body of work is one of the brightest artistic movements in Russian and European art of the 20th century — Suprematism. The term was first used by K.S. Malevich to characterise his abstract compositions, pure color planes in December 1915.

In her Art project Artist, Maria Tatarnikova turns to simple geometric shapes: a straight line, a rectangle, a circle, a square. These figures serve as the prototype for all forms that exist in the real world.

These figures serve as the prototype for all forms that exist in the real world. Combinations of geometric shapes of various sizes and colours refer to the idea of ​​individuality and uniqueness of the Woman. Combinations of geometric shapes of various sizes and colours used in the project refer to the idea of ​​individuality and uniqueness of each woman.

The faces of the models are consciously hidden in the photographs, since the concept of “facelessness” occupies an important place in Malevich’s Suprematist theory. In a broad sense, it means the refusal of art to depict the appearance of an object (and a person), its visible form. The appearance of man and its’ face, seemed to Malevich only a hard shell, a frozen mask, a mask that hides the essence.

In the photographs and the short film, as in the paintings of the Suprematists, there is an appeal to the dynamic correlation of shapes and colours. The combination of geometric figures of various colours and sizes forms asymmetric balanced Suprematist compositions permeated with internal dynamism.

At the initial stage, the term Suprematism, going back to the Latin root ‘suprem’ meant dominance, the superiority of color over all other properties of painting. “When the habit of consciousness disappears to see in the pictures the image of corners of nature, Madonnas and shameless Venuses, then only we will see a purely pictorial work,” Malevich wrote.

As Malevich believed, in Suprematism neither color nor form is perceived in an isolated sense, but as a whole and serve only to convey the general dynamics. Color, thus, emerges from the pictorial mixture into an independent unit that has an independent philosophical meaning, but at the same time, like an individual in a team, is in the general system of meanings of the work.

Such an understanding of painting is Malevich“s system of worldview, where the perception of the world is immutability in all changes in the color and form of being became an initial idea of Marias’ project. Such an understanding of painting is the system of Malevich”s worldview, where the perception of the world is immutability in all changes in the color and form of being. Therefore, it is necessary to understand and use each form, each color as an expression of the sensation of forces, energy, developing in the psychophysiological areas of human existence.

In the study of colours that had a symbolic meaning, the five main ones are most often considered: red, black, white, blue and green, which are the main colours of the project.

About Shooting

A zinc quarry in the Leningrad region was chosen as a location for the shooting. The location was chosen due to the fact that a light background prevailed in the works of the Suprematists, as a symbol of infinity. The shooting of a short film was also made from a drone, this was done in order to equalise the space in all directions. Model images represent the basic geometric shapes and colours used by the Suprematists.

The faces of the models hidden behind the masks are a direct reference to the ideas of “facelessness” in the works of Malevich. Despite the fact that the faces of the models are hidden, the diversity is clearly emphasised by the clothes. The differences in shapes and silhouettes are beautifully demonstrated by five non-professional models. Through images and plasticity, women tell their stories, bringing a unique splendour to the overall composition. The photographer Mariya Tatarnikova was inspired by real women, their strength, beauty and uniqueness. The idea of ​​emphasising individual features and accepting beauty in any of its manifestations is the main essence of the project “Suprematist Composition”.

The project was carried out jointly with the brand COEUR 1989