Diana Krilova Stream oil on canvas, 200x160cm, 2018
Diana Krilova paints the world through the wide-open eyes of a child. Landscapes of days filled with endless possibilities; school summer holidays three weeks in where the old year has become a distant memory, the coming autumn still too far ahead to even exist. The skate park alone at 7am on a Sunday morning, while most are still sleeping at home in their beds. The ramps gleam in the early sunshine, as hour upon hour of fun waits ahead. Trees to be climbed and conquered, meadows and woods of strange old houses to be explored, while blizzards of golden leaves rain down and all around from above.
“When I was a child in the 80’s, with both parents working and grandparents living far way, I was one of the street kids. With keys to our flat, I would get back from school, eat whatever my mum would leave for me from the night before and then go out to climb trees, walk rooftops and explore the neighbourhood with a bunch of friends. The world felt safe and any grown-ups were there to help, not to endanger. Having children in the UK we are constantly reminded that the world is filled with danger… the whole thing about safety here has so much paranoia. I moved my family out of London to give my children the freedom of childhood in nature, the way I had it. My paintings are about that, about childhood, about having all that time to play and be free and to grow.”
– Diana Krilova
“Diana Krilova’s paintings are beautiful yet haunting. The colours evoke dreamy, distant, and warm memory, yet embody a kind of longing for the past. Her work reminds me of my own childhood, and the bitter sweetness of remembering it.”
– Caroline Grant, The Sustainable Arts Foundation.
Diana Krilova oil on canvas, 82x97cm, 2019
Diana Krilova Of Apples and Trees Exhibition Opening Thursday 27th June 18:00 – 21:00
Friday 28th and Saturday 29th June 12:00 – 18:00 at 5th Base Gallery, 23 Heneage Street, off Brick Lane, London E1 5LJ www.dianakrilova.com
