Exhibition by Lora Malysheva
12 February – 13 March 2025
Vernissage | 12 February 2025 | 20:00
Full Moon Gallery
Admission free!
The Full Moon Gallery invites you to explore the dazzling world of Lora Malysheva, a pioneering artist who helped the ancient art of enamelling to flourish once more. This posthumous exhibition pays tribute to Malysheva’s mastery of the cloisonné technique and presents an amazing collection of her works – paintings, pastels and, above all, her luminous enamel creations.
Malysheva was born in Odessa (Ukraine) in 1946 and grew up surrounded by art and resilience. The daughter of celebrated painter Hennadii Malyshev and Holocaust survivor Katij Rosental, she grew up in the circle of Odessa’s most prominent artists. After studying in Odessa and at the St. Petersburg Academy of Baron Shtiglits, Malysheva returned to her hometown, where the light of the Black Sea and the beauty of her own garden became the basis of her artistic vision.
Her technique, which is based on the cloisonné process, requires extraordinary patience and precision. Each piece begins with a copper base that is covered with layers of delicate enamel glaze. Repeated firing in the kiln gives the works a unique vibrancy. The intense heat melts the enamel, creating colours so rich and saturated that they seem to glow from within.
In this painstaking process, Malysheva created complex compositions featuring women – often herself – amidst gardens with flowers, fruits and symbolic animals. These dream-like images radiate a sense of harmony, combining the Renaissance-inspired elegance of her figures with the organic beauty of nature. Her works are both deeply personal and universal, inviting the viewer to find moments of peace and connection in her art.
Malysheva’s passion for enamel painting was sparked during her visits to Dresden in the 1980s, where she studied the techniques of Chinese and Dresden enamelling masters. Inspired by what she saw at the Grünes Gewölbe, she brought these techniques back to Odessa, where she founded a vibrant community of enamellers and shared her knowledge in workshops.
Her legacy continues to shine in works exhibited in prestigious collections around the world, including the Getty Museum in the United States. This exhibition at the Full Moon Gallery not only celebrates Malysheva’s technical brilliance, but also invites us to reflect on the interplay of light, colour and emotion that characterises her art in a special way.
Enter a world where light and imagination merge, and experience the unparalleled artistry of Lora Malysheva – a tribute to beauty, resilience and the timeless art of enamelling.