Thematic Supremus. Deesis Tier

Technique: Canvas, oil.
Size: 195 × 90 cm.

The Deesis tier (deisusny chin) is the central row of an Orthodox iconostasis, in which the Mother of God, John the Forerunner and the saints stand before Christ in prayerful intercession. Sigutin translates this iconographic scheme into the language of Suprematism: the figures of the tier turn into geometric signs, and the act of intercession is read through relations of colour and plane. Part of a cycle of seven works, it continues the artist's long-standing dialogue with Malevich – a fusion of avant-garde non-objectivity with the sacred tradition of the icon that defines his 'Supremus' series.