The boss of a top art gallery Mark Jamieson got the shock of his life when he found out his new “star” Aelita Andre was a two-year-old. “I was shocked and a little embarrassed” he said.
Tiny genius?
Aelita’s mother Nikka Kalashnikova and her husband, Michael Andre, did not set out to mislead the gallery. They simply wanted Aelita’s work to be judged on its merits. “Of course, every mother is proud of their child. I didn’t tell him (Jamieson) because I had all these feelings going through my head — fear, embarrassment.”
Kalashnikova says Aelita began painting shortly before she could walk. Both parents are artists and Aelita was used to seeing them work on canvases on the floor.
Kalashnikova at first dismissed Aelita’s painting as “just mucking around” but by August last year she’d seen enough potential that she provided her with a canvas painted red (by her mother) and let her get to work. The image that resulted is among those on display in the exhibition, which has been opened on January 16 in Melburn.
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