Kukula

The framing option for this RUN includes a 1 inch ornate gold frame with archival acid-free backing, UV-glass and ready to hang hardware.

"This piece was created in May of 2009 using oil on MDF. The painting was shown at Dorothy Circus Gallery in Italy as part of my Sugar & Blood solo show that same year.

I have a series of paintings which flowers, little trees and bushes grow out of my girls' body, it symbolizes creation and creating art or life. I feel like it is very feminine, but I assume everyone creates something, so everybody can relate to this feeling." - Kukula

Kukula was born in a relatively isolated village about an hour north of Tel Aviv. Her few neighbors were mostly retirees, many of them Holocaust survivors. Her childhood imagination was nourished by equal parts princess fantasies and World War II horror stories. Thus the attempt to reconcile real life horror with fantasy life sweetness emerges as a central theme in her work.

After receiving her degree in illustration in 2003 from Vital-Shenkar, Kukula moved to the U.S., where she lives now.

Kukula’s paintings center on feminine, doll-like figures, often surrounded by objects with sometimes clear, sometimes obscure symbolic meaning. The work registers the influences of both classical European art forms and contemporary pop culture. In her figures’ poses Kukula recalls traditional portraiture, yet the style is manifestly modern and pop-influenced. Kukula’s compositions thereby disclose her personal struggles as mediated by a rich multi-cultural heritage.