This is a polychromatic painting that is oil on canvas. It was produced in the autumn of 2001, and its measurements are 150 x 125 cm. Boris & Gleb is one in a series of paintings devoted to the genre of religion (others include Nicola and Gottesmutter). The artwork can be attributed to the genre of the grotesque if we accept that as a genre in conditional terms. The painting features two anthroposophical figures that are not linked and that are not doing anything. They have been placed almost symmetrically in regard to the centre of the painting, thus creating a static, stable and tense composition. The formal technique that has been brought to bear by the artist is highly decorative, and that reduces the role of spatiality, light and shadow, as well as scope. These are not necessary in this artwork, and the indirect message of the painting is enhanced because of this. There are no spatial elements in the artwork, which might emphasise the absence of contemporary space. Most of the colours are warm in tone – something largely dictated by the influence which the artist identified. That is the 15th century Moscow School of Orthodox iconography. The colours include red, brown, ochre and yellow, as well as spectral colours such as ultramarine blue, red, and also achromatic tones of white, black and gray. Lines are used in the artwork, but the dominant formal approach is not one that could be called the relationship between areas of colour. The rhythm of areas is replicative, with evident reference being made to the original inspiration. The form of the strokes used and of the texture of the finished artwork is rooted in the tool which was used – the palette knife. The texture, however, is almost smooth, it is not exaggerated. The artist has used the same technique in other artworks, as well. This is not an innovative technique. It can be seen to a greater or lesser extent in the work of other artists, as well.
What we have here is a grotesque and caricatured representative of sacral icons. The primary story in the painting more or less represents a compositional technique borrowed from the icon that was the artist’s inspiration – a depiction of St Boris and St Gleb (“невинно убиенные”), both of them using their right hand to point to a sword in their left hand. This is a hint as to the fact that they were killed with the same swords while they were sleeping, as is reported in the apocryphal texts of the Orthodox Church. These images are not used literally in the painting. When we look at the bare parts of the figures’ bodies (arms, legs, faces), we see a zoomorphic approach. The images are those of a macaque monkey and a baboon. By merging supposedly contradictory spheres – the sacral and the profane and animalistic – the artist is displaying his approach. This represents a merger between Christian morality and Darwin’s theories in an ironic and even grotesque way. The slogans here could be “Don’t kill Darwin’s idea while it is asleep!” or “Animals need their holy ones, too!” This latter slogan could be seen as an ironic approach toward organisations which seek to protect animals. The question here might be this: What would have happened if evolution had proceeded down a different path?
In comparison to other works by the artist, here he has used forms of expression such as colour, imagery, compositional techniques, references, etc., which help to address the viewer not just in terms of visual perception, but also of the collective subconscious. Viewers can decide whether they like or dislike the painting, but they cannot formulate what exactly they like about the painting, at least not immediately. One would not want to reduce this to banal speculations involving iconic symbols; that is certainly not the case. The artist’s intentions are not based on such speculations, although it is evident that he has played around with moral and ethical values, recognised compositions and images, as well as specifically selected actions. The position taken by the artist in this regard is dictated by his personality – his work is clearly facilitated, stimulated and initiated by a high level of spiritual development. The artist’s paintings represent far more than a list of formal techniques. Instead, we are largely dealing with mind games and the fruits of intellect. Sergejs Djomins first studied history and philosophy at the University of Latvia (1991-1995). He reads a great deal and tries every day to learn new things. Knowledge is the basis for a painting that is based on an idea.
The actual value of Sergejs Djomins’ art in general, as well as of Boris & Gleb specifically, can be based on the artist’s courage in representing and defending his position, on the views which he has about art, and on the way in which the artist manages to maintain his own style and his own subjective approach to this painting and others at a time when the world is oversaturated with information. The artist’s work is easily recognised among that of other artists, both younger and older. His art never loses its timeliness. Indeed, it “grows stronger” year by year.
