Zurich-based Ukrainian artist Alina Kopytsia’s (*1983) work explores ambiguity on gender stereotypes and on societal and sexual conventions. She is a fervent feminist and considers herself and feminists in general to be sexually more open-minded as a result of being very outspoken regarding individual wishes and needs. In this respect, to Kopytsia, BDSM (Bondage, Discipline, Dominance, Submission, Sadomachism) is a means to liberate individuals rather than to suppress them by employing conscious and controlled outlets. 

In addition to academic drawings, Alina Kopytsia’s practice incorporates traditional crafts like sewing and stitching to create sceneries of ambiguous gender identities and sexual practices, and to prompt political messages.

These techniques, generally associated with female skills, allow her to generate an enticing juxtaposition between form and content. Alina Kopytsia also deals with fluid identities by creating non-binary gender extensions with silicone and ceramics. They appear throughout her artworks which often bear a modular character.

Alina Kopytsia was born 1983 in Poliske, in the Kiev region, Ukraine. She holds a Master’s degree from the National Technical University Ukraine ‘Kyiv Politechnic Institute’. Currently, she is doing a Masters in fine arts at Zurich University of the Arts.