22/05/2021
TIFA Artist Feature - Dimitri Shabalin
Dimitri Shabalin is a mask maker from Moscow, Russia. Dimitri began his creative journey in 2013 when visiting his mother; he used his old childhood toys and some of his mother’s jewellery to make his first mask. At the time, he was working as a Fashion Editor at Numero and Interview magazines. Dimitri crafts bejwelled sculptural masks that can be worn as accessories or exhibited as wall art. He uses a wide variety of materials from jewellery to old toys and memorabilia, a unique way of upcycling, where the old meets the new and behind the jewelled facade is a more meaningful evocation of the past. Dimitri seeks to give a new lease of life to the pieces he collects; reawakening the era they come from and telling the stories of their owners through his masks. He is fascinated by old civilisations and has a particular intrigue for Soviet era memorabilia, and the social and political experiences of that time. He approaches his work as an archaeologist. Dimitri hopes to inspire creativity, curiosity and an adventurous spirit through his pieces.
The bright, sometimes defiant, sometimes even frightening masks of the artist Dmitry Shabalin are in demand among collectors and are successfully sold at modern art auctions. In his hands, household items are formed into fantastical fairy compositions that you want to look at and consider.
He says “Because a mask is a full-fledged piece of art, with its own history and mythology, and only then an accessory. For me, this is a reflection of my state here and now, an imprint of the moment, collected from improvised objects. At the same time, a collage and a portrait, which, as an art object and a trophy, can decorate the space of a house, filling it with new meanings.”
