A contemporary Kazakhstani artist, curator, and publisher of the literary and art newspaper "Pygmalion" (1997–2001). Her works include photography, video art, and installations. Key methods include surrealism, metaphor, and documenting everyday life. Key themes are the body, female subjectivity, feminism, everyday life, traditions, and urban space.
A. Girik studied at Rudny Industrial University (RIU; Faculty of Production Process Automation, 1982–1987). Since the 1990s, she has been creating photo and video art and curating exhibitions.
In her work, A. Girik addresses the image of a woman and explores female subjectivity. She reflects on "second nature" and presents the body as another man-made construct that nevertheless remains connected to nature ("Biotech", 2006). The surrealism of the image is complemented by impersonality and generalisation: the body is perceived as an object that requires recharging and social interaction. A. Girik also develops these ideas in the context of feminism and gender, examining "femininity", its attributes (for example, braids), the degree of its social significance, and the responsibility this concept places on women ("Woman of the East (Gallows)", 2006). The artist also studies patriarchal traditions entrenched in society, such as weddings, and deconstructs them by treating them as artistic gestures (in collaboration with Oksana Shatalova, "Wedding Dances", 2006).
A. Girik’s works have been exhibited in Kazakhstan and abroad: "Video Identity: Sacred Places of Central Asia" (Almaty, 2004); "Capturing Utopia" (Fournos Centre for Digital Culture, Athens, 2005); "2nd Bishkek Exhibition of Contemporary Art – In the Shadow of Heroes" (ArtEast, Bishkek, 2005); "2nd International Photography Biennale" (Brescia, 2006); "Contemporary Film and Video Festival" (SWGC Art Gallery, Corner Brook, 2006); "Portrait – Show for Wifleem – Show for the World" (Casoria Contemporary Art Museum, Naples; Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, Santa Fe, 2006).
A. Girik is also the author and co-author of several publications, including "Culture and the Media: Problems of Interaction" ("Timid Thirst for Paradise: Apology for a Utopia", co-authored with O. Shatalova, Almaty, 2000); the special issue "Kunstkamera" ("Organization", No. 4, Almaty, 2003); and the catalogue "2nd Bishkek Exhibition of Contemporary Art – In the Shadow of Heroes" ("New Nomads", Bishkek, 2005).
Information about A. Girik is stored in the Documentation project collection — the archive of the Soros Center for Contemporary Art – Almaty (SCCA).
Photograph from the website Ariadna.media