From ART VS CULTURE to Atαξία – (P)HAOS: The Evolution of an Artistic Practice

The period between Electra Varnava's first and second solo exhibitions reveals an evolving artistic practice grounded in drawing, observation and the continued exploration of the human figure.

In 2014, Varnava presented ART VS CULTURE at Rouan Gallery in Limassol. The exhibition focused on graphite drawings and introduced many of the ideas that continue to inform her work today. Through a statement accompanying the exhibition, she emphasized emotional response, observation and the creative possibilities of realism.

More than a decade later, her second solo exhibition, Atαξία – (P)HAOS, presented in December 2025, expanded these investigations into new thematic territory. While drawing remained her primary medium, the exhibition explored broader questions concerning order and disorder, as well as the relationship between visible and unseen realities.

The human figure occupies a central role in both exhibitions. However, the later body of work places greater emphasis on the tension between structure and uncertainty. Rather than focusing exclusively on external appearance, the drawings examine internal states, personal experience and the processes through which meaning emerges.

According to the exhibition text, the works developed through a method that combines observation with intuition. Forms gradually appear through layering, erasing and redefining, allowing each drawing to evolve through a sequence of decisions rather than a predetermined outcome.

This continuity between process and subject matter is significant. The same methods of construction, revision and transformation that shape the drawings also reflect the themes explored within them. Order and disorder coexist, while realism functions as a vehicle for investigating experiences that cannot always be directly observed.

Viewed together, ART VS CULTURE and Atαξία – (P)HAOS reveal an artistic practice that has remained committed to drawing while continuously expanding its conceptual scope. The exhibitions demonstrate how realism can operate not only as a representational technique, but also as a means of exploring the complexities of perception, emotion and human experience.

Through these two exhibitions, Electra Varnava presents a body of work that is both technically grounded and conceptually evolving, reflecting more than a decade of artistic development.