Slasky - The Romanov Twins

Giclee on Hahnemuhle 350g + certificate of authenticity

The Romanov Twins
Artist: Slasky (based on Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun)
Title of the original work: Portrait of Grand Duchesses Alexandra and Elena Pavlovna (1796)
Intervention: Digital neon installation

Description and Critique
In this provocative neo-pop work, the Italian artist Slasky performs a semantic short circuit between the aristocratic elegance of the late 18th century and the disturbing aesthetics of auteur horror cinema. The original portrait by Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, which celebrates the grace and sisterly complicity of the Zar’s daughters, is reinterpreted here through the addition of a red neon inscription that frames the figures.

The chosen text, “Come and play with us, forever... and ever... and ever,” is the famous quote of the Grady twins from Stanley Kubrick’s Shining. This insertion radically changes the perception of the subjects:
Color and Formal Contrast: The vivid red of the neon disrupts the soft, pastel palette typical of Le Brun’s Neoclassicism, casting a sinister, contemporary light on the grand duchesses’ faces.

Narrative Dissonance:
The innocence of the original subjects is replaced by a sense of unease. Grand Duchesses Alexandra and Elena Pavlovna lose their historical identity to become icons of a collective horror imaginary, playing on the theme of the “double” and eternal (and spectral) childhood.

Stylistic Anachronism:
Slasky fuses court painting with mass pop culture, creating a work that asks viewers to reflect on the persistence of classical art in the digital age and its capacity to absorb new meanings, even the darkest ones.

The work stands as a masterful example of Urban Classicism, where the past is not only cited but “lit up” by new and unsettling media vibrations.

NOT FRAMED

Slasky is an Italian digital artist; his works have been exhibited worldwide, including at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and published in fashion, tattoo, and art magazines.
He is known for his 360° digital technique, which he uses to create immersive and surreal images. His works explore themes such as nature, identity, and perception; he is an innovative and visionary artist helping to shape the future of digital art.

A dialogue between 17th-century Flemish painting and contemporary visual language, questioning power, authorship, and permanence

Slasky is an Italian digital artist; his works have been exhibited worldwide, including at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and published in fashion, tattoo, and art magazines.
He is known for his 360° digital technique, which he uses to create immersive and surreal images. His works explore themes such as nature, identity, and perception; he is an innovative and visionary artist helping to define the future of digital art.


FACE 2 FACE

March 5th
Laundry Studios
2 Warburton Rd, London E8 3RT
UK


Tokyo Open Art | Art on Loop Exhibition
Venue Address
3 Chome-20-18 Jingumae, Shibuya,
Tokyo 150-0001,
Japan


Parallax Art Fair
Kensington Town Hall
Hornton Street
London
W8 7NX


2024
Solo Exhibition
CONTEMPORARY VENICE
Palazzo Pisani-Revedin
S. Marco, 4013A , 30124 Venezia, Italy

ARTLAB
Benjamin Eck Gallery
Munich, Germany

2021
Mia Fair
The informazioni Photography Art Fair Italy
Milan, Italy

ST-ART, STRASBOURG 2021
25 - 28 NOV. 2021
PARC EXPO STRASBOURG

SM'ART AIX-EN-PROVENCE, 2021
14 - 18 OCTOBER 2021
BOOTH 123A

2021
Mia Fair
The informazioni Photography Art Fair Italy
Milan, Italy

Lausanne Art Fair
Beaulieu Lausanne
Booth 59
Swiss

Lille ArtUp 2021
Lille, France

StreetArt//UrbanArt
Legnano, Italy

2020
Woodward Gallery
WashYourHands Exhibition
New York City, NY


RedSheep Gallery
Work in Paper
Stockholm, Sweden

2019

Wopart Art Fair 2019 / Centro Esposizioni - Lugano, Swiss

Lang Leve Rembrandt
Rijks Museum Amsterdam