Rustam Mirzoev started creating his new project before the full-scale war – in September 2021. The artist painted these watchful children and adults in a workshop in the center of Mykolaiv, which will soon be shelled by the russian military. The artist was forced to leave his hometown, and he completed the project in random, and not so random, places in different regions of the country. But the artist remained true to his approaches to work: each painting is created slowly, and each stroke is thought out. 

"A Boy with a Briefcase" is one of the most colorful projects by Rustam Mirzoev. However, this is not a glossy motley. Bright spots of blue, yellow, and red look like alarm signals. 

The project is imbued with the premonition that ordinary life is approaching the abyss. In general, the images of Rustam Mirzoev are often disturbing. The characters are confused and lonely, they seem to be waiting for the viewer's advice. The surrounding space seems to displace these girls and boys. In fact, there is no abstract background – the space in which the individual is placed is often the main character of the picture. And this space conflicts with a person, it causes restlessness. 

If we resort to comparisons with cinematography, Rustam Mirzoev's works are reminiscent of David Lynch's films. Your brain has nothing to rely on when analyzing a psychedelic plot. The artist creates a mosaic from seemingly unrelated pieces and fragments. Familiar signs and any other landmarks are missing, your imagination floats between images. This is an intellectual painting. Art for those who seek meaning.  

One of the central images – "A Boy with a Briefcase" – was created between 2021 and 2022. It was supposed to be a cheeky boy with a briefcase full of dollars. Now he is scared, and he only has documents and "necessary things" with him, which everyone has their own.  

During the war, we especially want to get answers to various worldview questions. Sometimes we rely on such chimeric things as art. But the heroes of Rustam Mirzoev have no answers. They will only tell you what you want to hear. They will help you understand yourself a little better.