I was invited to take part in a live BBC Radio programme on Brexit on the day Teresa May triggered Article 50.
Here's my part of the programme, which took place during a large media event on Parliament Square in London.
It is hard, you see... apart from all the obvious political and economic uncertainty Brexit brings, for EU expats in the UK this new reality can feel like someone's just pulled the rug right under your feet. People are, understandably, upset.
We are all here completely legally and have been building our lives in the UK, contributing to the economy, diversity and culture. As humans we only have a limited period of time to make our mark on history and society and to put our life's efforts at risk, on the scale in which the current events have, is unfair to put it mildly.
However my experience of living in different countries has taught me that when you fall, you need to get up, keep your chin up and carry on. Moving to another country can be one of the most exciting and fulfilling experiences in a person's life but it does come with numerous risks and uncertainties. The EU has removed some of these uncertainties but hey, life still comes with no guarantees.
This interview has left a few of my friends, who know how emotional, direct and opinionated I can be at times, a bit surprised about how positive I am about my life here. And when I was first invited to take part in the show, I considered bringing up the topic of what Brexit can potentially mean to artists and the art world, which has not been discussed enough in my opinion. However, this is too complex a topic to cover in the few minutes a programme like this allows for.
So here's the truth - life in the UK has been good for my family and I guess also for most other EU nationals who want to stay here. If that weren't the case, I would have already packed my bags and moved somewhere else. Brexit is a hurdle, which has the potential of having catastrophic proportions, but it is a hurdle I hope we can overcome.
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| Impressions of Barcelona, Oil on Canvas, Paola Minekov |
Author and artist - Paola Minekov -
Sometimes you arrive in a strange city completely by chance and you immediately feel at home… And sometimes you may have lived there all your life, know every block of pavement as the palm of your hand, and yet you just can’t shed this uneasy feeling that perhaps you don’t really belong there.
Our relationship with urban spaces is long and complex, an integral part of our evolution as species. What defines the character of a city? Is it the architecture, the private memories we share with someone special, the unique light, the smells?
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| Amsterdam, Acrylic on Canvas, Paola Minekov |
When I paint the cities I’ve lived in and visited, I do so from memory and a few rather vague sketches. I’m not looking for realism but for that spark which inspires me to return to a place, in my mind, again and again. I let my impressions of the streets, buildings and nature take over and turn into abstractions until the picture I see when I close my eyes is clear and distinctly mine.
Then I transfer it to the canvas.
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| Gaslight London, Acrylic on Panel |
Gaslight London, the paining above, is a contemporary take on the classic view of the city’s historical centre. All great cities are built near a river or the sea and London, with its impressive bridges, makes no exception.
As an artist, I find the reflections of light in water a fascinating extension of our physical world, an alternative reality I can spend hours exploring in my art.
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