Size: 60 x 70 cm framed

Year: 2017

Medium: Collage on photographic paper

To say I have been inspired by crystals and minerals would be an understatement—I have been utterly obsessed with them! From Mineral Art to Mineral Clothing, I did it all across a vast variety of mediums: drawings on paper, collage, and oil on canvas layered with embroidery, as well as actual stones sent out as tactile invitations for my brand’s showcases at Paris, London, and Copenhagen Fashion Weeks, jacquard knitwear replicating raw mineral patterns, and ultimately their integration into healing work. The presence of minerals in my life is undeniable.

This profound connection to rocks, crystals, and fossils stems from my childhood in Mirny, a small diamond-mining town in Siberia, where I was surrounded by diamonds. My grandmother worked for Alrosa, the Russian diamond mining giant,and would often come home for lunch wearing several diamond necklaces, bracelets, or earrings—it was simply normal.Though life took its turns and I no longer own those family jewels, that visceral origin shaped the Mineral Man series began in 2013. In this collection of portraits, I explore the inner personalities of people I know, attributing specific mineral stones to the distinct nature, energy, and qualities of their character.

This particular work was created much later, 2017.

The connection of 'invisible' cords is represented here by the fluid stream floating in space between the two beings—exchanging a continuous flow of energy. As part of the original Mineral Man series, this piece incorporates Obsidian crystal to reflect the consciousness of the two beings who remain connected to the Cosmos. The deep black hue and inherent properties of Obsidian ground the artwork, bringing a profound understanding of silence, depth, and 'the void.'

One of a kind artwork by Iulia Filipovscaia