In my practice, I explore human vulnerability, childhood trauma, and suppressed emotions through painting and ceramics. The central symbol in my work is “inflatedness” a sign of intense internal pressure.
My painting series focuses on the Inner Child, depicted as large, inflated creatures cramped within the canvas. They remind viewers to listen to their hidden needs and childhood dreams.
In my ceramic series, “Grumpies” this message becomes three-dimensional. Resentment is multifaceted: bright, colorful figures represent childhood, while black-and-white objects belong to adolescence. It is much better to collect your grumpies on the wall as art, rather than in your soul!
Alina Apari (b.1994, Siberia is a Berlin-based artist and art therapist. Her practice explores the plasticity of psychological boundaries, translating fragile, subconscious human states into a dialogue between form and material. Her work has been showcased in international exhibitions and is held in private collections worldwide.
Using camouflage strategies, biomorphic aesthetics, and “candy-like” glazes, Apari conceals grotesque deformations behind a decorative facade. This contrast highlights the gap between a playful exterior and deep-seated childhood traumas. In the series “Inner Child,” she examines an entity that swells in response to our emotional states. These bloated, rounded volumes symbolize the accumulation of “unprocessed” experiences.
The project “Grumpies” further personifies toxic emotions into absurd, unsettling forms. By “detaching” these feelings through physical objects, she creates a space for healing.