Markela Iacovou

10.07.1990, 2022

Photograph edited in photoshop and illustrator, digital printing on canvas and manual work with hagiography pigments and caustic liquid 

"10.07.1990, which blends digital manipulation  with manual techniques, explores memory, identity and trauma. Influenced by Lacan’s “mirror stage” theory, I use a family member in my work to construct my imaginary self, reflecting how I see myself through others. Photography, my chosen medium, captures irreproducible moments, preserving fleeting images and alluding to death’s inevitability. I enhance these photos with caustic liquid and hagiography powders, creating patterns that reveal my psychic wounds, compiling a new  body of work that bridges the past and present." - Markela Iacovou

Markela Iacovou’s work bridges personal  trauma and artistic expression, exploring identity, memory and the unconscious, through a blend of digital and manual techniques. She alters black-and-white family photographs digitally and manually to reflect her inner psyche. She makes photography, which has been central to her life since childhood, an integral part of her work, encapsulating her body, mind and essence. Using hagiography pigments, caustic liquids and her own body, she creates textured surfaces that invite viewers to look beyond the image. Her fingerprints, symbolising trauma, allow her to be seen while remaining invisible.

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