About Anna Kiparis
Anna Kiparis is a painter currently residing and working in London as a Global Talent in the UK. With an architectural background, Anna engages with space, reconstructing it from works of literary art and recreating it in a series of paintings. As both an architect and artist, she has collaborated with MMOMA, Pratt Institute, NY, London Metropolitan University, Compostela Summer Program, Santiago de Compostela, Theatre of Nations, Moscow, and the Sao Paulo Art Biennial, Brazil. Anna's work has received prestigious recognition, including the UNI Award and the Johan Huizinga Peace Prize from the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Her manifesto-driven works delve into contemporary illustration and religious symbolism, providing profound insights into societal narratives and cultural identities.
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The Living Symbol: The Cow
In object-oriented reality, the boundaries between the living and the non-living, the visible and the verbal, blur. All entities—humans, animals, and objects—interact constantly. In this context, humans and animals share much in common, from biological frameworks to behavioural patterns and relationships with nature and society.
Unlike humans, who are often inseparable from their social statuses, animals in culture have greater flexibility to become symbols. They quickly transform into objects onto which various meanings can be projected. This makes them significant participants in cultural and symbolic systems, placing their rights on par with human rights.
The cow is a prime example of such a living symbol. Standing in a field and chewing grass, it is simultaneously imbued with sanctity by many religions and associated with violence and exploitation. In cultures where cows are revered, they might be spared from being eaten. However, in other contexts, they are raised for slaughter, embodying the intersecting lines of reverence and violence.
This duality allows the cow symbol to parallel contemporary social and political issues, such as immigration and human status in various societies. The cow symbolizes motherhood and nourishment but is ultimately sacrificed physically or symbolically. Thus, it becomes a tool for exploring themes like the coexistence of beauty and violence, sanctity and conflict.
My work with cows in art explores and highlights these complex and relevant themes, offering viewers a fresh perspective on familiar symbols and their meanings in the modern world.
Influences from Literature and Art
Significant literary works play a vital role in my exploration of the cow symbol's exploitation. Notable examples include George Orwell's "Animal Farm," Kurt Vonnegut's "God Bless You, Mr Rosewater," Charles Dickens's "Bleak House," and Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "The Autumn of the Patriarch." Key artists engaged with themes of war and violence through the cow as an object include Francis Bacon, Damien Hirst, Diego Velázquez, and JMW Turner.
By integrating these influences, my art delves deeply into the cow's cultural and symbolic implications, revealing the intricate layers of meaning and conflict embedded within this powerful symbol.
In object-oriented reality, the boundaries between the living and the non-living, the visible and the verbal, blur. All entities—humans, animals, and objects—interact constantly. In this context, humans and animals share much in common, from biological frameworks to behavioural patterns and relationships with nature and society.
Unlike humans, who are often inseparable from their social statuses, animals in culture have greater flexibility to become symbols. They quickly transform into objects onto which various meanings can be projected. This makes them significant participants in cultural and symbolic systems, placing their rights on par with human rights.
The cow is a prime example of such a living symbol. Standing in a field and chewing grass, it is simultaneously imbued with sanctity by many religions and associated with violence and exploitation. In cultures where cows are revered, they might be spared from being eaten. However, in other contexts, they are raised for slaughter, embodying the intersecting lines of reverence and violence.
This duality allows the cow symbol to parallel contemporary social and political issues, such as immigration and human status in various societies. The cow symbolizes motherhood and nourishment but is ultimately sacrificed physically or symbolically. Thus, it becomes a tool for exploring themes like the coexistence of beauty and violence, sanctity and conflict.
My work with cows in art explores and highlights these complex and relevant themes, offering viewers a fresh perspective on familiar symbols and their meanings in the modern world.
Influences from Literature and Art
Significant literary works play a vital role in my exploration of the cow symbol's exploitation. Notable examples include George Orwell's "Animal Farm," Kurt Vonnegut's "God Bless You, Mr Rosewater," Charles Dickens's "Bleak House," and Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "The Autumn of the Patriarch." Key artists engaged with themes of war and violence through the cow as an object include Francis Bacon, Damien Hirst, Diego Velázquez, and JMW Turner.
By integrating these influences, my art delves deeply into the cow's cultural and symbolic implications, revealing the intricate layers of meaning and conflict embedded within this powerful symbol.
Current Work
By the end of 2024, Anna is working on a monumental series dedicated to «The Autumn of the Patriarch» by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, exploring the theme of the cow as a transconfessional symbol.
The first three works are titled «The Last Supper» and reflect the Christian narrative about the appearance of a prophet and the significance of survival. The images narrate the activities of cows in various rooms of the palace until one emerges onto the balcony, becoming a symbol for the people, like a prophet proclaiming their freedom. If the animal reaches the balcony, no one is alive; the dictator will no longer hold people in fear.
Read the fragment from The Autumn of the Patriarch
Read the fragment from The Autumn of the Patriarch
Purchase Prints
You can choose a high-quality print of the artwork available or request the original canvas.
Please select the one you love:
Please select the one you love:
Events & Exhibitions
Over the course of a year working in London, Anna has held one solo exhibition and several group shows:
8 June
Solo Show
Venue: Golders Green Park, London
Works on display: The Last Supper series
Works on display: The Last Supper series
10 MAY — 16 MAY 2024
Group Show
Venue: Boomer Gallery, London
Works on display: White Series
Works on display: White Series
25 APRIL — 4 MAY 2024
Group Show
Venue: RuptureXIBIT Gallery, Kingston upon Thames
Works on display: Seraphim Series
Works on display: Seraphim Series
12 JAN — 21 JAN 2024
Group Show
Venue: The Holy Art Gallery, London
Works on display: Passion of Cows Series30 NOV — 9 DEC 2023
Group Show
Venue: RuptureXIBIT Gallery, Kingston upon Thames
Works on display: Passion of Cows Series
Works on display: Passion of Cows Series
30 OCT 2023
Solo Show
Venue: The Village Green Grocers, Greenwich
Works on display: Passion of Cows, The Last Supper Series
Works on display: Passion of Cows, The Last Supper Series
16 SEP 2023
Group show
Venue: Greenwich Art Hub
Works on display: Passion of Cows, The Last Supper Series
Works on display: Passion of Cows, The Last Supper Series
Contact Anna Kiparis
cowonbalcony@gmail.com
Hampstead,
London
London
