With Frieze Week approaching, London is getting absolutely packed with blockbuster (painting) shows, pushing my FOMO off the charts. But between those must-see crowd-puller presentations, the city is full of secret gems, too. And entering its final weekend, Andrei Pokrovskii’s solo show Coordinate at ZÉRUÌ is one of those small yet chord-hitting presentations.
It’s no secret that I’ve been a fan of Pokrovskii’s work for some time, and I even had the honor of curating his Spanish solo debut last year. And knowing his work and visual language well only helps me appreciate the vibe of this new body of work and how it’s hung. Filling the walls and wall piers of the gallery’s intimate space, the first thing you notice is how the work is presented. With the smallest work paired next to the largest, and some pieces hanging at the windows, the display immediately sets the show's playful, almost performative tone. This deliberate layout embodies the exhibition's premise, which "considers navigation not as a fixed route, but as an ongoing process of orientation through unfamiliar territories, memories and possible futures." And the sheer variety of the works emphasizes this process.
Ranging in format, scale, color palette, motifs, and general atmosphere, the works themselves seal the deal on the playfulness and intrigue. Fairly legible, but never entirely revealing, the visuals feel like a collection of should-be clues. A person navigating a snow-choked forest, a flashlight search at the riverbank, a grape-treading break, or a greenhouse mise-en-scène - each image is packed with mystery and a dose of fantasy. With protagonists depicted through fluid gestures, appearing as part of the surroundings rather than the story's main characters, they're almost exclusively "caught somewhere between departure and arrival." And it’s the way Pokrovskii stages, paints, and illuminates them that makes them feel suspended, as if about to decide on the next move, or frozen by the director's “...and scene!” —Saša Bogojev
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