‘Arabesque hours. Star Trek.’

‘Arabesque hours. Star trek.’, 2024

Oleksandra Malyshko

Oil on Canvas –  23.6″ x 31.5″

This piece was born during the winter blackouts in Ukraine—a time when the absence of light became both a profound challenge and an unexpected muse. Created almost entirely in the dark, the painting reflects my meditations on the night sky, the stars, and the unseen worlds around us.

During those long hours without electricity, I spent much of my time walking through my neighborhood in total darkness. Occasionally, people would pass by like characters from vintage Japanese animation, their figures illuminated only by the faint glow of flashlights or phones. These moments felt surreal, sparking thoughts of distant galaxies and alternative realities.

In the shadows, the silhouettes of trees transformed into something otherworldly. Amidst the chaos of war, they appeared as ‘cosmic giants’—ancient travelers navigating through time and space. This landscape, etched into my memory, is a testimony to finding a strange, haunting beauty in the midst of uncertainty. The deep blues of the background represent the heavy night, while the vibrant, structured lines of the trees are the light of the soul that refuses to go out

Exhibition History:
This painting was presented in 2024 during the exhibition “Star Trek”, Dnipro, Ukraine and is displayed on the poster.

Oleksandra Malyshko is a Ukrainian landscape impressionist artist from Dnipro. Her path started in architecture, which gave her a sense of structure and rhythm. But today, when she paints, her main goal is simply to catch a fleeting moment of life, its movement, and its flow.

Living in Ukraine today, Oleksandra chooses not to paint literal images of explosions or war. Instead, she processes the reality around her through her intense use of red and fiery tones. This vibrant color and movement are her personal way of living through the state of war as an artist, finding life and energy amid the darkness.