Artist
olya eliseeva
An Evolving inner journey
Olya Eliseeva’s artistic practice embodies a sophisticated interplay between personal and collective memory, digital transformation, and the evolving dynamics of contemporary art. Her work engages with the tensions between tradition and technology, local identity and globalization, crafting a visual language that is both conceptually rigorous and emotionally resonant.
Through video art, digital collages, and immersive spatial installations, Eliseeva constructs environments where the viewer is not merely an observer but an essential participant. Her exhibitions function as carefully orchestrated experiences, emphasizing sensory engagement and the performative act of viewing. Here, the mediator serves as both guide and interlocutor, framing the encounter as a dialogue between space, time, and perception.
Selected Work
Olya’s table of Memories
Olya’s Table of Memories in collaboration with Masha Shprayzer and Masha Neverova stands as one of her most compelling and immersive performances, inviting viewers to actively participate in the creation of a collective artwork. The concept of this work draws from the profound cultural significance of communal eating, shared feasts, and the transmission of culinary traditions across generations. Rooted in the rituals of food-sharing, memory preservation, and heritage, Table of Memories transforms the dining table – an emblem of unity – into a space for the exchange of personal histories, knowledge, and cultural narratives..
The table, adorned with a white cloth, serves as a symbolic canvas where participants are encouraged to inscribe their personal stories and reflections, using black ink to trace the connections to their own heritage. This act of writing is not merely an act of contribution but a ritualistic process of honoring and preserving family histories. The intimate act of writing by hand, particularly with a brush on fabric, becomes a meditative gesture, one that forces the participant to slow down and engage with each word. This tactile engagement fosters a deeper connection to the past, offering a space where the resonance of memory and the sense of continuity with ancestors are palpably felt.
Through this performance, Eliseeva elevates the simple act of writing into an introspective journey. As participants transcribe their personal narratives, they also evoke a broader cultural inheritance, intertwining individual memory with collective heritage. The ritual of writing by hand, akin to a vocal pronouncement of each word, draws participants into a temporal loop, where they are not only reliving the past but also reinterpreting and sharing it with the present. Table of Memories thus becomes an act of both personal reflection and communal creation, where memory, history, and tradition are continuously reimagined.
Beyond her individual practice, Eliseeva plays a pivotal role in shaping contemporary artistic discourse through her curatorial and collaborative endeavors. As the founder of Sisters Room Artist-run space and co-founder of Castello Art Residency and 11.12 Art Residency (Malta), she fosters experimental platforms that challenge conventional hierarchies within the art world. Her commitment to decentralization and interdisciplinary exchange is evident in her ability to recontextualize cultural codes, often juxtaposing irony, documentary strategies, and philosophical inquiries into identity.
At its core, her work is a meditation on the fragile equilibrium between power and vulnerability, the transient nature of human experience, and the decisive moments that redefine both the self and the collective consciousness. Through her nuanced approach, Eliseeva does not merely document the shifting landscapes of contemporary reality—she invites us to inhabit them.
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