Snake Changing Skin: Ilya Fedorov-Fedorov

Ilya Fedotov-Fedorov’s solo exhibition with Fragment gallery titled ‘Snake Changing Skin,’ reflects on the ability to grow by shedding a part of ourselves. All animals shed their skin throughout their life. Humans leave behind a mostly invisible trail of dead skin flakes, while snakes actually shed a whole layer of skin in one go. It is said that they do this for two reasons; the need to get rid of parasites in their skin which may be harmful to them, the other reason is that it is needed for the snake to grow. It will reach a point where it’s not possible for the snake to grow any further before it leaves the old layer behind. 

Fedotov-Fedorov has been continuously moved by creatures around him. He studied bioengineering and philology, before moving into the art world. Remembering his childhood in Moscow, he describes how he turned to other species for support and guidance. As Fedotov-Fedorov notes, “dealing with the exclusion I encountered as a queer and often sickly child, I played mostly with insects, and spent my time watching cartoons and biological movies. Slowly, it became easier to think that I could be an animal rather than human. This exhibition is about loneliness and otherness; about interspecies connections, disassociation with your own body, and trying to become someone else.”   — Jeanette Bisschops