For her works Volha Savich has used elements of traditional Belarusian ornament as hidden codes from the distant past, and purified modern digital photographs to elementary sign. When placing them in the same flatness there appear new values, which the author offers the viewer to read as the code of hidden identity, capable for multiplication in a new ornament. The resonance of nature, time and character of sign systems creates a field for dialogue and questions: "Can a picture be a new element of fabric ornament of the present time? Does it replace the earlier tradition? What kind of code stores contemporary photography for the future? "

Aleksei Shinkarenko, curator.Minsk Center for Photography. 29.10.2014

PRAFOTA BOOK 2015

«Gene BY» is a sense puzzle that comprises two achieves: traditional folk ornaments and personal images borrowed from Belarusian websites people use for purchasing and selling second hand items. Photographs made by strangers with disguised, hidden faces attracted me seen as a material that enables me to formulate a conclusion about the contemporary Belarusian citizens’ self-identification. When using these images, I decided to leave their format and cropping intact, combining this archive

with symbols, the sacred knowledge of which often remains unavailable and unclaimed nowadays. The ornament came into the series as a result of my passion for the Belarusian authenticity, sacred meaning of “tutejshy” ("local") symbols and the study of how nowadays modern culture replaces the position "signs" used to take. For the series I chose the technology «paper transfer print» - a method of lithographic printing that supposes the use of gum arabic and black and white paper images that serve as the basis for the pigment application. The printing technology made it possible to combine both the visual languages into one statement, but with a different meaning that was left free for interpretation.

* 2015 winner of “The Baltic Photo Biennale. Photomania.”: Photography Category: Experimental Photography.

2014 finalist PRAFOTA (young Belarusian art/documentary photography contest within the confines of the Month of Photography in Minsk), Minsk, Belarus