Interview with Eugene Kuperman
Throughout your career, you've achieved significant success and recognition, including awards. Could you share a moment or accomplishment that stands out to you as particularly meaningful or transformative in your artistic journey?
I honestly don’t feel like I’ve accomplished anything near what I would like to in my artistic career, but there are several things that stand out for me. One of which is that when I did a few of my first paintings in my Crimes Against Humanity series, such as one about the Holocaust, titled “Never Again,” and one about the Armenian Genocide, titled "1915," I was proud of the awareness that these projects brought to the public. Although not that many people view my work, even if I can enlighten just one person to understand the significance of the subjects that I depict, maybe that one person can show their entire family, and those people can show their friends. I feel like, as a social commentary artist, my aim is to bring more light and reason into this world. This is why my focus on such subjects doesn’t take into account my monetary compensation, because they are purely ideological. In a capitalist age, I still feel like there’s more important things in life than money, which is why I create some of the works that I do. Another moment that stands out for me as transformative in my artistic journey was when I completed one of my recent 2023 major paintings titled “The Alchemist." This piece took me roughly two and a half years to execute, as was planned since 2017. I feel like I reached a new level in my artistry after completing this work. It’s very subtle and is sort of a hybrid between Johannes Vermeer and Rembrandt van Rijn. I consider it to be my best painting work to this day, and I put all of my artistic knowledge that I’ve gained through out 33 years of creating art, since I started when I was 3 years old. The aspects I deployed in this work were everything from anatomy, atmospheric perspective, color theory, golden ratio, linear perspective, sacred geometry, and other aspects that were done with my own twist. I also utilized texture in it in a strategic manner, unlike anything I’ve ever painted in any of my previous works. The subtleties in it are what make this work stand out; it really takes a keen eye to appreciate it because it’s very quiet, sophisticated, and subtle.
Could you share some key background aspects, such as early inspirations, pivotal moments, or significant mentors, that have played a crucial role in shaping your artistic journey?
When I was around three years old, living in Kharkiv, Ukraine, my father called me up to the book shelf. He opened up a book, and one of the first pages was a grayscale photograph of Michelangelo’s Statue of David. As a child who has never seen anything like this, I was very confused. I asked my father, “Why is this man all white, and why is he nude?” My father responded, “This is a sculpture carved out of a rock called marble by an artist named Michelangelo who lived hundreds of years ago.” When my father told me this, I was stunned. Then he said something that was even more impressive: he said that this statue was taller than our ceilings. We had tall ceilings in Ukraine, but the statue was far taller than the ceilings we had. However, being a three-year-old boy, it didn’t make a difference how tall the statue was because everything seemed giant to me from that point on. Fast forward to 2017, when I saw the original statue of David in La Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence, Italy. I was left speechless. One of my first teachers whom I studied with since I was about 8 or 9 years old was a Russian artist, Alexander Antonyuk. He gave me a foundation for what drawing and painting were. He also taught me the art of landscape painting. Throughout my school years, I’ve always taken art classes and have had some good teachers in college who taught me interesting aspects of art. In 2010, after a newspaper article about my art, a great Russian painter named Leonid Steele read this publication and contacted me because he wanted to meet me. I was in awe of his work, and I studied with him from 2010 until his passing in 2014. I miss him to this day. Afterwards, I felt like I needed to learn more, so I found an incredible artist online named Lance Richlin. He taught me the old master methods of drawing, painting, and sculpture. He also taught me linear perspective, the way it has been practiced since the High Renaissance. The knowledge I’ve gained from him is invaluable. He is still one of my best friends and is my mentor. He’s more like a father figure to me, and I admire him tremendously.
Your artistic journey has evolved from impressionistic landscapes to works of social commentary. What prompted this shift in your artistic direction?
At a certain point, after painting hundreds of landscapes, not only did this task seem boring and repetitive, but it also seemed completely meaningless to me. Being as creative as I am, I cannot just do the same thing all the time; I need to explore and keep growing. I also thought that art could do more than just make pretty images. I also felt like there are many things that are wrong with this world, and with me putting those messages in my work, maybe I can make any bit of a difference with my art by using it for truly good and noble purposes, as opposed to just being selfish the way I felt back then. I essentially wanted to produce truly great work that would not only be memorable but also timeless in dealing with the human condition. Figurative art is what the greatest old masters have done, and I felt like that’s the best that I can do, so I went for it. I don’t settle for less, especially in something that is my life’s passion. I wanted to not only make a difference in this world with my art but also earn my way to be alongside some of my artistic heroes in history, such as Michelangelo and Rembrandt. I felt like I was wasting my talent painting landscapes, even though they were my most successful art topic, but I knew there’s more to art and life than the mundane. I needed to create challenges for myself and to make work that truly had a real purpose in order to give a real sense of meaning to my life.
As an artist whose work is deeply rooted in social commentary, how do you balance the need to convey powerful messages with the aesthetics of your art, and what do you hope your audience takes away from your pieces?
I feel like beauty in art is mostly seen in a one-dimensional manner. I don’t believe that only works that have happy connotations can be beautiful. I believe that even the darker aspects of life, such as tragedies, can convey a dark sense of beauty. The social commentary works that I produce hold a deep and intimate meaning for me, but I also aim to execute them at the highest masterful level possible, which adheres to old master standards. Essentially, my social commentary work is meant to enlighten my viewers, in the hopes that after they view my work, they take something positive away from it. Whether it be to gain a broader sense of empathy, sympathy, and understanding for fellow humans or an insightful understanding of this life, I want my art to have a positive influence in this world.
Your travels to places like Paris and Italy to study art have been a significant part of your journey. How has experiencing these cultural and artistic landmarks in person influenced your creative process?
When I was studying art in Paris and during both of my trips to Italy, I used these opportunities to view as many old master works as I could, most specifically works by my hero, The Divine Michelangelo. I wanted to know about the secrets of the old masters and how they accomplished such high quality in their works that, to this day, is still unmatched. I carefully observed all of the world that I could, visiting various churches and museums throughout Europe. That’s really some of the best art education you can get in fine art: to look and to truly understand what it is you’re seeing. Since my travels to Paris and Italy, my work has definitely improved. I am not sure in exactly all of the ways my art has grown, but even on a subconscious level, I started viewing art differently since I saw some of the greatest masterpieces of Western art during these trips to Europe.
Since late 2014, you've focused on creating works that offer social commentary. What motivates you to address social issues through your art, and how do you choose the subjects for these works?
I don’t have any specific way of motivation for my art; sometimes life just motivates me to create something that I hadn’t considered previously. With my painting “Never Again,” that’s on the theme of the Holocaust, I actually had a dream of the Holocaust, and after I woke up, I started working on this idea right away. With my painting “Boulevard of Broken Dreams," that’s on the issue of homelessness in the United States of America, I feel obligated to tackle this subject because seeing homeless people in my city breaks my heart. With my anti-drug painting, “The Devil is in the Details," I had a vision in my mind of exactly what I needed to paint, and I had to express this truth about how drugs are detrimental to society since I’ve known people whose lives were dramatically ruined by drugs. My real motivation for my social commentary is to express the absolute truth, whether it’s popular or not. Whether people love or hate me for it is irrelevant. I’ve gotten a lot of criticism for my social commentary, some of which was malicious. I feel that many people are misinformed about many topics, and I want to bring to light the truth about them. My motivation is for people to see the reality of what I convey and for them to hopefully grow as individuals by gaining something positive from my art.
Of all the works you've created, do you have a personal favorite or one that holds special significance to you? Could you share the story behind it?
I mentioned my painting “The Alchemist," and thus far it’s my favorite painting that I’ve done. I’ve spent two and a half years painting it during sleepless nights. Possibly close to or around 10,000 hours just in this work alone. My aim was to perfect every detail, even though I came short of perfection, but I did the best I could. The way this idea happened is that I was at my local Starbucks in 2017. There was a barista who knew me, named Adrian. I saw him working, and I thought that I should take some photos of him. I asked him if it was alright if I photographed him working. He asked me why I wanted to photograph him, and I replied that I’m considering making a painting of you. He liked my response and told me to go ahead. This idea, though, was on the back burner since I came back to it during the end of the COVID pandemic in 2021. During the 2020 COVID pandemic, I was in lockdown and could hardly go anywhere. It was a difficult time for me as well as for almost everyone else. One thing I looked forward to was getting my drink at Starbucks. It was the highlight of my day, as small as it may seem. Seeing these baristas working around the pandemic and keeping people like me afloat with hopes for the future confirmed to me what I already knew: how valuable these people are. Doing services like this for others is a form of love, and I appreciate every single barista that has served me a drink at Starbucks. Every job has dignity, not only for baristas but also for clerks, custodians, and anyone else who keeps society afloat. I value and admire these people very much. To read more about the message in this piece, you can go to the link: https://www.deviantart.com/landscapist/art/The-Alchemist-955068053.
What have been some of the most challenging aspects of your artistic career, and how have you overcome them?
There are many challenges to being an artist who is mostly doing work purely for ideological purposes. Also, I’m not a commercial artist, so I don’t get compensated nearly as much as artists who are represented by top galleries. It’s a challenge to be creative in a world where everyone is expected to conform and stay in line, when I don’t do that. I do what I feel that I should, because I know that time is more valuable than money. As much of a challenge as it is, for me to create work of integrity, it’s also a privilege because I’m not selling my soul like so many commercial artists do, doing the same cohesive body of work all the time just not to fall out of favor instead of truly expressing their deepest sense of creativity. I don’t owe anyone anything, except for myself, to truly aim to create works of high merit. I’m also a designer, so this is how I make up for the financial burden of my artistic ideas, but in reality, it’s not easy for me. I wouldn’t recommend anyone to be an artist unless they absolutely cannot live without art, like me. I feel an absolute craving to express my ideas and bring them into reality; otherwise, my soul won’t be satisfied in this life.
Looking back on your own experiences and achievements, what advice would you give to emerging artists who aspire to reach similar levels of success and recognition in their careers?
My advice is to create work that you truly believe in. If you believe in and love what you do, other people will notice it. There are different ideas of what success is. In today’s banal world, it’s mostly measured by currency, but to me, there are more important aspects of art than the price tag, such as the ideas, quality, and philosophy behind the works. An artist who chooses to make art their path must first decide what it is about art that is most important to them and then give it their all in this direction, putting in 100%, nothing less than that.
As an artist who has already achieved considerable success, what future goals or aspirations do you have for your art? Are there new themes, techniques, or projects you are particularly excited to explore in the coming years?
I just recently started sculpting, and my aim for the future is to hopefully work my way up to carving marble in the same fashion as Bernini and Michelangelo. I also want to learn architecture in order to design some beautiful classical buildings, so I’ll put that on my bucket list after my goals for sculpture. I would also someday like to direct films. I know it sounds strange that there are so many ambitious goals in my life, but like Michelangelo said, “Lord, grant that I may always desire more than I can accomplish.”
