A Pastel Dystopia

A Pastel Dystopia

Karen Khachaturov’s images are firmly lodged in a disjointed fairytale. Each photograph is like a hard-boiled sweet with a salty centre. Alluring pastel pinks, blues and mint greens give way to a persistent sense of danger and imprisonment.

Hands, feet and heads are lodged within pale pink cinder blocks – figures slumped against walls in an effort to escape. Meanwhile characters send smoke signals into the air: plumes of orange and magenta dissipate into clouds.


Stairs and roofs cut diagonally the compositions, splicing the perspective. The figures are always ascending, or descending – looking for a way out of the walls or into the sky.

Khachaturov has exhibited internationally in Tbilisi, Tel Aviv, Beijing, Shenzhen, Toronto, Sydney, and New York, including ICP, the Naregatsi Art Institute and HAY Art.


Credits:
All images courtesy of Karen Khachaturov
.