Oleg Minko

Oleh Minko (1938 – 2013) is a Ukrainian nonconformist artist, a representative of «hermetic» art. He created images with a double meaning, where he narrated the theme of the work through the symbols of objects and human gestures. In the style of paintings, the influence of ancient Ukrainian icon painting and European modernists P. Picasso, J. Bracca, and J. De Chirico is felt. The works of Oleh Minko are kept in the state museums of Ukraine and private collections in Ukraine and abroad. The artist had personal exhibitions in London, Helsinki, Brussels, Copenhagen, Washington, and Vilnius.

The quintessence of the late period of Oleh Minko's creativity is a reassessment of values, reflections on society's flaws, and man's tragic fate in the 20th century. "The Card Game" is a work of that time. The artist symbolically divides the composition into two parts: collective and personal. The picture encourages critical thinking: personal is always colorful and comfortable; society, on the other hand, is like a card game: it has its dangers and a constant choice of priorities.