Artist Feature: Constantinos Chaidalis
"I do not think that grief lets much be said.”
The following gallery is from the series “Sinister,” a body of work created to depict how as part of the human condition, we revert back to a childlike state when coping with death and loss. I asked Chaidalis to expand on his firsthand experience with death and how it relates to his most recent series.
“A year ago my mother passed after a year long battle with cancer. The disease turned my mother helpless in my eyes, innocent and childlike. The people around her, including myself became helpless as well. Witnessing such a terrifying reality, unable to react, belittles you somehow. The wait for something sinister is a wait that cannot be filled with ordinary doings. Through this experience the grief and childlike reactions grew stronger in my perception. I also felt like time stood still.
“The main concept behind my collage illustrations is to depict this state for various people or myself in various moments, in that exact moment that time stood still. I created a cryptic non-verbal language because I do not think that grief lets much be said. Most of the illustrations are wishes, safe places, hiding spots. This project is me, making a map of memories that helped me cope with loss.”
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Constantinos Chaidalis is an award winning multidisciplinary designer, specializing in graphic design, illustration and motion graphics. He has been working as a motion/broadcast designer and as a creative director for various production houses and agencies. He gets his hands dirty on motion graphics, compositing, color correction, Cg, 3D animation and a plethora of creative work. Alongside his design work, he works on his personal art projects, mostly collage illustrations and their animated versions. He lives and works in Athens, Greece. To view more of his work, visit his site here.