September 20, 2024
Natalia Koren Kropf, a Russian-born artist now based in New York, has made waves in the art world with her interdisciplinary approach and commitment to eco-friendly practices. Her work, spanning sculpture, painting, and printmaking, explores themes of interconnectedness, harmony, and the eternal dance of light and movement. In this exclusive interview, Kropf shares insights into her creative process, her latest sculptural series, and her vision for the future of her art.
The Evolution of Inspiration and Artistic Voice
Widewalls: Your upcoming exhibition with Artios Gallery will feature new sculptural works. Can you tell us about the inspiration behind this series and how it relates to your overall artistic vision?
NKK: This year was particularly challenging to me, both personally and professionally. I have been awarded a year of Scholarship by The Art Students League of New York, an esteemed art institution with its 150-year vibrant history. I embraced several disciplines there but focused on sculpture.
I started on a wax prototype for Music in the Air, it took me through the fall. The daily schedule was intense, while I was managing care for an elderly family member, who has passed away in February. The emotional silence of loss was deep, almost debilitating. At first, I found relief in listening to classical music, which was always my reliable studio companion. I was working on the sculpture Serenade, based on the eponymous piece of Robert Schumann. Then with spring upon us, I participated in the Affordable Art Fair, sold a few pieces and interacted with many wonderful people, which gave me a boost of energy to finalize the fabrication of the new bronze piece. I was over the moon with the results, and I was overjoyed upon completion of the lengthy process, hence the title Over The Moon! So, as you can see, the inspiration can come from unexpected direction, but it always comes from the place of sincerity and gratitude.
Widewalls: Throughout your career, you've worked in various media, including painting, sculpture, printmaking, and photography. How do you maintain such a consistent artistic voice across these different forms of expression?
NKK: Short answer: initial intent - quality - curiosity. Let me elaborate.
The initial spark of a visual concept is so brief and elusive, that it takes a lot of artistic skill to manifest it. In this process education, experience and learning play an important role - it's the quality of a work of art that establishes its value. Curiosity comes in when I am deciding how the same idea will look in 3D, or within minimum lines, or with limited palette, or translucent. Would photography be the best way to verify the lighting, or would the light be reflected by the three-dimensional form of the sculpture, or absorbed by a painted surface? Sometimes the only way to find out is to actually make a piece or several pieces, or even a series. I often come back to an idea years later to record a new interpretation.
Widewalls: In a previous interview, you mentioned that observing nature inspires you constantly. How has this inspiration evolved in your recent sculptures?
NKK: There is no end to nature's marvels! Everything is there, but my reading of it changes with time. I was studying the structure of trees and human anatomy in my forming years, now I enjoy the flow, plasticity, movement and light distribution. My recent sculpture reflects that.
Widewalls: Your art often explores themes of interconnectedness and harmony. How do you see these concepts reflected in your latest sculptures?
NKK: As I already mentioned in the previous answer, those are universal qualities of the flow. It is also apparent in music - a musical harmony consists of so many sound vibrations working together in unison. Everything is connected.
Natalia Koren Kropf, Unity (2023)
Artistic Identity and Environmental Consciousness
Widewalls: As an artist with Russian origins now living in New York, how has the current geopolitical situation and its impact on Russian artists globally affected your practice or the reception of your work?
NKK: I have lived in New York for two thirds of my life, so I consider myself a New Yorker. My artistic practice is not tied to a particular culture. I deal with universal themes - humanity, nature, music, harmony. I want to contribute to world peace by bringing awareness of balance and the creative coexistence that unites human beings, not separates them. My works have always been treated with respect by the curators, collectors and the fellow artists.
Widewalls: You've spoken before about your commitment to eco-friendly techniques and materials. How does this environmental consciousness manifest in your sculptural work?
NKK: I do my best to try to avoid toxic materials altogether. Unfortunately, some sculpting methods that are non-toxic can be still hazardous to lungs and on skin. I wear protective gear when I work with gypsum, metal, aqua-resin, stone. Whenever I can, I am working outdoors, or otherwise in a specifically equipped studio with proper ventilation, vacuum hoods, sandblasting box, etc. I also like to try to reduce the amount of plastic I use in my work, by using natural adhesives and water-soluble binders instead, when possible.
Left: Serenade (2024), Right: Over The Moon (2024)
Creative Process and Artistic Growth
Widewalls: Your artistic journey has included formal training at prestigious institutions and a period of teaching. How have these experiences shaped your current approach to creating art?
NKK: My love of artistic expression, manifested very early, which led me to a long period of study and practice with the best teachers. Staying committed to this practice led me to professionalism. And then came the Gratitude. I started to pass on those professional skills to those who were open to learning about art from a practicing artist. When the moment was ripe to re-evaluate my art, myself and my lifestyle, I had to pause teaching in order to proceed with the new expression.
Widewalls: In your previous work, you've explored the concept of "inner light" in art. How does this idea translate into three-dimensional sculptural forms?
NKK: The concept of inner light translates as the "soul of the artist ignited by inspiration". Thus, any worthy work of art I create is lit by this inner light. Be it a sculpture, or a painting, or a poem.
Widewalls: You've mentioned that your process is intuitive. Can you walk us through how you approach a new sculpture, from the initial concept to the final execution?
NKK: The intuition plays a main role in every stage of the process, from initial conception to sketching and throughout the fabrication. The intuitive approach to me is to be open to new possibilities, directions and even methods. For example, as I practice tai-chi or perform an interpretive dance, I move my arms in circular motions, as I imagine cutting through space, creating surfaces and curves, fragments of which can be depicted as a linear trajectory or as a vector to modified form. Having this mental image in my head, I then develop it further in my imagination. Sometimes it takes minutes, days or even months. When these new vectors become integrated, they manifest themselves in sketches and drawings.
However, I often skip the drawing stage. I just begin sculpting in wax, with the idea to cast the sculpture in bronze, or I create the metal armature for mixed media pieces, or I bend card-stock to create a small maquette. Similarly, the execution of every following stage is malleable. Once the sculpture emerges from this fluid manual process of shaping, I use a combination of addition and subtraction methods to "dance" with the material, and push-pull the proportions until it feels just right to me. Then during the stage of surface treatment - I like to play with opposites of reflective and matte (Over the Moon!), textured and smooth (Unsurface), light and dark (Unity).
Unisurface (2019-2021)
Future Directions
Widewalls: Looking ahead, how do you see your art evolving in the next few years, particularly in terms of medium and subject?
NKK: Everything is perpetually changing. I embrace the change, and my art reflects my essence as a witness. I am working on a new figurative series, particularly portraiture. Looking at a human being and discovering a new universe is very fascinating. I am always inspired by the unknown, and it keeps me going.
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