Title: Harvesting fly agarics
Medium: Canvas, tempera
Dimensions: 80*70 cm
Year: 2018
Object Number:
Copyright: © Olya Lookoye
Location: Almaty, Kazakhstan
Description:
At the heart of this work lies the fragile boundary between the magical and the mundane, where irony and fairy-tale elements transform familiar motifs. Fly agarics are carefully cleaned, sorted, and preserved in jars, turning something potentially dangerous into a tool of discovery—or even alchemy. The two figures by the fire are engaged in their work like characters from folk tales, where supernatural beings are not always malevolent but simply follow their own laws. Here, they do not evoke fear but rather a smile—within this world, the mystical submits to everyday ritual.
The painting balances between folklore and personal myth, weaving magic into the simplest of actions. It invites the viewer to reflect on the nature of enchantment in daily life, on perceiving reality through the lens of childlike wonder and irony.