A Sculpture by
Nadya Likhogrud

Behind many works of art lie personal stories — quiet, unfolding over time, shaped by memory and meaning. One such story is shared by Alexandra Rakhimova, reflecting on how artist Nadya Likhogrud spent two years creating a sculpture for her daughter, Aliya.

What began as a gift eventually became something more — the first piece in a personal art collection, marking the beginning of a lifelong dialogue with art.

Aliya’s birthday falls just before the New Year — a time often filled with an abundance of gifts, where their significance can easily dissolve in quantity. At a certain point, it became clear that something more considered was needed. Alexandra предложила объединить гостей вокруг одного жеста — вместо множества подарков создать один, но наполненный смыслом. A work of art that would remain, carrying memory and presence through time. Initially, the idea was modest — a small sculpture.

But everything changed after a visit to Nadya Likhogrud’s solo exhibition at MMOMA.

Behind many works of art lie personal stories — quiet, unfolding over time, shaped by memory and meaning. One such story is shared by Alexandra Rakhimova, reflecting on how artist Nadya Likhogrud spent two years creating a sculpture for her daughter, Aliya.

What began as a gift eventually became something more — the first piece in a personal art collection, marking the beginning of a lifelong dialogue with art.

Aliya’s birthday falls just before the New Year — a time often filled with an abundance of gifts, where their significance can easily dissolve in quantity. At a certain point, it became clear that something more considered was needed. Alexandra предложила объединить гостей вокруг одного жеста — вместо множества подарков создать один, но наполненный смыслом. A work of art that would remain, carrying memory and presence through time. Initially, the idea was modest — a small sculpture.

But everything changed after a visit to Nadya Likhogrud’s solo exhibition at MMOMA.

Among the works, one stood out — a boy on a horse, built around a found fragment of a 1980s carousel. Suspended in the dim light of the museum, it seemed almost luminous, holding within it a sense of paused time. It was not simply a form, but a state — delicate, precise, and deeply evocative.

The impression was so strong that the idea of the gift transformed. What emerged was a desire to create something personal — a work that would carry a similar emotional resonance, but with Aliya herself at its centre.

Nadya embraced the idea, and the process began with observation. In the artist’s studio, Aliya posed, sitting on the horse for extended periods while measurements were taken and sketches developed. It required patience, yet the experience was never rigid — it was alive, fluid, and filled with small moments.

Other children were present in the studio, and the process unfolded naturally around them. They sculpted, glazed ceramic pieces, laughed, and moved freely within the space. The studio became not just a place of work, but an environment where art was lived rather than explained. For Aliya, the experience was also shaped by small, personal details — including meeting Vesna, the artist’s dog, which became one of the most tender and memorable parts of her time there.

The work evolved over nearly two years. Over time, it moved beyond its initial purpose and became something anticipated — not simply a gift, but an event that carried meaning through its duration. By the time the sculpture was completed, just before Aliya’s seventh birthday, it was no longer tied to a specific occasion. It had become part of a larger story.

The base was conceived as a separate element — a rotating structure in patinated metal, reminiscent of a fragment from a music box. It extends the narrative of the sculpture, introducing movement, continuity, and a sense of time unfolding.

The installation took place in the presence of close friends — a moment that marked the transition from process to presence. In many ways, this is where the true value of the work reveals itself.

In this story, art was never something external, something to be introduced or explained. It was always present. From an early age, Aliya was immersed in museums, galleries, books, and creative practice — drawing, sculpting, observing. Over time, even a small ritual emerged: in exhibitions, they would search for animals within artworks, turning observation into a game, and attention into a habit. This is how a way of seeing is formed.

Nadya Likhogrud’s work resonates precisely through this ability — to engage with memory not through narrative, but through sensation. It evokes childhood not directly, but through something more subtle and deeply familiar.

Today, the sculpture is only the beginning. The collection continues to grow — ceramics discovered at fairs, vintage objects, works on paper, and pieces by contemporary artists gradually shape Aliya’s room into a cohesive artistic environment. Here, there is no distinction between interior and art — everything exists as a unified whole. And within this context, the sculpture is no longer simply an object.

Over time, Alexandra Rakhimova Interiors has developed a distinct way of engaging with its guests — through intimate, intellectually driven gatherings where spatial aesthetics are intertwined with cultural depth.

The interior collection by Alexandra Rakhimova Interiors emerged as a natural extension of the studio’s work — a continuation of our exploration of space through the finer, often imperceptible layers that shape everyday life.