Sedmitsa

One of the key features of Konstantin Chaykin’s pictorial language is that it speaks about time with clarity, yet in deeply metaphorical terms. His signature style is built on a system of mechanico-geometric symbols. These are parts of a mechanism that come together as images through which the master reflects on the changeable nature of time and its endless variety of forms.

“Sedmitsa” is an integral part of the large-scale allegorical self-portrait “Mad Horological Party”. She stands behind the artist’s back, embodying the girl from Lewis Carroll’s classic tale who fell down the rabbit hole and encountered the most unexpected paradoxes of time. Beyond the boundaries of the self-portrait, however, she is no longer Alice but Sedmitsa, named after an old word for the seven days of the week.

Konstantin Chaykin plays with every detail of the heroine’s appearance, her hands are turned into curved flat springs, a detent for a seven-point star wheel traditionally used in watchmaking as part of a day-of-week module. This duality gives the story multiple layers, a fairy-tale character and a calendar archetype, an instant and a cycle, coexisting at the same time. “Sedmitsa” continues a cycle of collectible limited-edition prints inspired by Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland.

To convey the depth of colour in the original large-scale painting, this print was produced using a special method – a 14-colour screen print. The image is built up in multiple stages, entirely by hand. A separate stencil is created for each colour. This craftsmanship echoes watchmaking, where the precision of every movement is decisive. The screen print is made on German 100% cotton paper, 300 g/m². The limited number of motifs within the cycle makes this work especially valuable from a collecting perspective.

The limited-edition print “Sedmitsa” is released in an edition of 30 pieces. Each print is signed and numbered by the artist.