Original artwork description:

From the series "Male Ballet Dancers. Allegories. Dancing with Birds".
2015. Oil on canvas. 127 х 101 cm.
Allegory of Happiness and Eternal Youth
Throughout Asia, the crane is a symbol of happiness and eternal youth, and symbolises good fortune and longevity because of its fabled life span of a thousand years. Embodying longevity and peace, it is the second most favoured bird symbol after the phoenix. Since ancient times, the Chinese have been exceptionally creative in using various living, non-living and imaginary objects to represent abstract ideas. Among the most popular and widely used symbols are the ones for longevity. Cranes walking or flying together is the ultimate symbol of longevity.

Regardless of whether you are believers or atheists, we are all in one way or another pagan. This is in our genes. For thousands of years, Man was alone in his opposition to the forces of Nature. To survive, our ancient ancestors had to thoroughly know all the habits of the "enemy", to see and interpret his messages, which they were able to discern.
From our ancestors we got the habit of animating and endowing with the symbols of the heavenly bodies, objects and phenomena surrounding us, birds and animals. These characters are either generally accepted or completely individual.
So for me, many birds carry some kind of special symbol, allegory, or human characteristics, which I tried to depict in my works.

Materials used:

oil

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