Each tapestry of Julia Kiryanova is a spiritual journey, a ritual, a ceremony of transformation, filled with mythological characters – half humans / half animals – depicting an ‘unconditional state of mind’ in which the lines between reality and fantasy intertwine.

Having the ability to be open to our surroundings and being touched by them, makes our spiritual and emotional life rich, but also makes us vulnerable. Where the consciousness interconnects with the subconsciousness, there’s a potential power that is unexplainable. We can rise above ourselves, but it also can be frightening, representing our fears.

Julia is inspired by traditional techniques of painting and tapestries, themes of spirituality, gender, race, mythology, and the unconditional state of mind. She repeatedly uses the naked human body, based on equality, by presenting one’s fragility. Becoming naked literally presents stripping of all social layers and aims at deconstructing social behaviuors, securities and cultural certainties. What stays is the beauty of nudity; the essence of being.

The initial attraction to create tufting work was influenced by reconnecting with and exploring Kiryanova’s Slavic roots. There’s a habit in Slavic countries of hanging tapestry on the walls for heat isolation. It functions as a female womb that creates the feeling of safety and comfort.