Aïda Ruilova

 

It's exhilarating to begin somewhere and not know exactly where it will lead you. I started this recent project in the warm embrace of a heated pool, having my subjects recite the seminal trauma of my childhood, and ended up floating on an emergency air bag in a gnarly accident on the Long Island Expressway. Proof of my ill-fated destiny: a pile up was going to be the subject of my next project.

This is the nature of my "life's work"—sporadic starts and stops, unexpected jolts and crises, all of which awaken my sense of horror and lust for life. The subtleties of human nature, its repetition, and its optimism are what interest me. I use video to create works that are awkward and aggressive and that incorporate my affinity for the psychological aspects of fear.