Sergey Makarov's exhibition "Paper Garden" at the Totibadze Gallery. In his works, the artist creates a small world of contrasts that is engaging to interact with, almost like playing. It contains a place for the childlike, the naive, and the unreal, yet always touches on a more tangible, relatable reality.

"I like to notice people's inner child—especially in ordinary conversations with friends and acquaintances. At certain moments, it suddenly becomes visible: in their intonation, in their fears, in the way they dream or doubt.

I think this inner child never goes away; in some people it's more present, in others less. It remains as we mature and become "serious." And I find it interesting to connect with it—to notice this state in myself, to return to it, to try to see things a little more simply and playfully.

Paper, almost childish drawings, placed in a more rigid space, became for me an image of these inner children, but in different circumstances. They continue to live within us, even in a rather harsh world from which we sometimes want to hide.

This paper garden is about this state. About a fragile inner space, into which we sometimes want to peer.

I was particularly influenced by the image of personality transition in Daniel Keyes' novel "The Minds of Billy Milligan." There's a "spot" of light in the hero's dark subconscious, which is inhabited by different personalities. This image of illuminating the inner world inspired me to work with light and space in my work." — Sergey Makarov