Profile: Yarik Semich

Q: Name?
Yarik Semich

Q: Who are you and what are you known for?
I’m an artist, known for my illustrations inspired by youth subcultures of Britain of late 50′s to mid-80′s, and orthodox churches.

Q: What is a recurring theme you explore in your art?
I guess one’s background is very influential, and it unconsciously is seeping into every aspect of one’s life. You come to realize that when you start coming across the styles, techniques and objects that draw you the most. I’ve noticed that the recurring theme, by which I was influenced the most, is Eastern Orthodox and Islamic art. Everything about it, from architecture, clothing, patterns to elements of decor and jewelry is enchanting to me.

Q: If we were a fly on the wall, what would we find you doing at home?
You will observe me engage in various activities, depending on a medium involved. If it’s a laptop, you’ll find me looking up footage from WWII such as aerial dogfights, videos taken B-17′s crew members, photos and uniforms from both Great Wars as well as various documentaries about that period in our history. You’ll also find me reading, sketching, working on various art projects.

Q: A little known fact about yourself?
I majored in Chinese Language and Cultural Studies

Q: What excites you about either your poster, or the upcoming poster show?
I think a theme picked allows artists great freedom to interpret it as they feel pleased, and I am very excited to explore it through the lens of their mind.

Q: When you think of ‘a better place’, what do you think of?
To me ‘a better place’ is where its inhabitants are living in harmony with each other and nature, which means they are living out of freedom of their full potential and are an actualization of their best selves; a place where one’s mind is free of conditioned limitations of thinking and perception and is set onto what is noble and good; where liberty, a freedom within the limits, is exercised in its healthiest form, and line of work in which one is involved brings them utmost satisfaction, compensation and happiness. But of course the mind is first, everything flows from there.

Q: Where can we contact you and/or see some of your work?
Website is a work in progress