Molly Surazhsky

Lives and works in Brooklyn, NY, USA

Artist statement

I was born in Queens, NY in 1992 and I currently live and work in Brooklyn, NY. As a child of Ukrainian émigrés, my artistic practice is tinged with an inherited post-Soviet cynicism and humor. This underlying attitude emerges in my ongoing study of the corporatization of working-class lives, a critique of America’s role in international affairs with Russia and the countries of the former U.S.S.R, an acknowledgement of the realities between two opposing political philosophies—capitalism and communism—and the outcomes when a lack of balance between the two is employed on an economic, social and psychological level. I apply my studies of the lasting implications of Soviet collapse amidst a broader critique and satire of our uniquely polarizing time within the modern American political landscape. Utilizing sculpture, sound, photography, self-portraiture, textile design, and handmade garments, I articulate detailed narratives involving themes of hypocrisy, propaganda, class, culture, healthcare, and survival.

Artwork

• Lifting the Iron Curtain, 2022. Digital print on duchess satin, chiffon, cotton thread, leather, wood, and nails
• Dermokratizatsiya (Shitocracy), 2022. Digital print on duchess satin, poly organza, cotton thread, leather, wood, and nails
• The Storm Has Arrived, 2022. Digital print on vinyl
• Slava Culture War!, 2022. Dress: digital print on duchess satin, polyester, poly crystal organza, cotton thread, and sunflower petals from Ukraine Mannequin: fiberglass, plaster, wig, costume jewelry, and acrylic paint
• I ♥ American Boys, 2022. Digital print on duchess satin, cotton thread, and nails
• Freudian Slip, 2022. Digital print on duchess satin, cotton thread, and nails
• Not Very Kosher, 2022. Custom dresses (duchess satin, organza, and elastic bands) foam Statue of Liberty crown, garment rack, hangers
• Miss Americhka, 2022. Archival pigment print and white clips
• Don’t Work, 2022. Twelve C-prints
• Caesar’s Zombie Palace, 2022. C-print
• PPE • People’s Power Enhancement, 2020. Print on Vinyl
• Baba Yaga in Americhka, 2020. Silk, elastic, thread, iron coffin nails, black feathers, candles, pyrite, sulphur crystals, salt crystals, sand, pumpkin, gourds, chamomile, honey, lemongrass, pencil, paper, cinnamon, rose, peppermint, cloves, bay leaves, hibiscus infused vodka, wheat, oils, sea salt, chili pepper, cayenne, black pepper, sage, orange peels, mugwort, ashes, and sulphur dust
• Mashacare: Home of the Freaks, Misfits, & Weirdoes Lookbook, 2020. Perfect bound glossy book, 186 pages
• Island Care (Year 2100), 2019. Printed cotton and chiffon, cupping jars, chime candles, water bottles, witch-crafted oil, oil diffuser, shipping palette