Vladimir Kush: The Hidden Meanings in Vladimir Kush’s Art Revealed | DSH #1550

Summary

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Podcast Summary

Digital Social Hour with Sean Kelly

Episode: Vladimir Kush: The Hidden Meanings in Vladimir Kush’s Art Revealed | DSH #1550
Date: October 1, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Sean Kelly welcomes world-renowned artist Vladimir Kush for a deep exploration into the symbolism, creative processes, and personal philosophies behind Kush’s distinctive style known as "metaphorical realism." Kush shares stories behind his iconic works, reflects on the differences between American and Russian dreams, opens up about his early inspirations, and discusses his journey from Russia to becoming a gallery owner in the United States. The discussion is rich with metaphor, thoughtful musings on art’s role in society, and behind-the-scenes anecdotes.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Comparing the American and Russian Dream

• Vladimir Kush opens the episode reflecting on fundamental cultural differences:
  • "What is American dream in comparison to Russian dream? In Russia...somebody is telling the person, like, okay, don't worry about anything. Just go to bed. In the morning, you will be rich and famous... What American dream is will be rewarded according to their talent and hard work." (00:00)

2. Decoding The Artworks: Symbols and Stories

• Butterfly Apple and the Creative Process

  • The "Butterfly Apple" sculpture symbolizes the invisible and often unpredictable journey of artistic creation.
  • "If we imagine that the caterpillar's idea, then it goes into this apple and makes an invisible route inside...to come out as a butterfly." (01:25)
  • The butterfly, for Kush, represents the stages of life: life (caterpillar), death (chrysalis), and spiritual revival (butterfly). (02:04)

• Themes of Flight

  • Recurrent motifs like butterflies, dragonflies, and birds symbolize transcendence and overcoming the mundane.
  • "The dragonfly...it's about overcoming a mundane of everyday life...The wings is a symbol of overcoming the everyday mundane and reaching the new heights." (03:13, 03:46)

• Route 66 Sculpture

  • Uses a base molded from the actual Route 66, tying American mythology and road-trip tradition to personal transformation.

3. Technical Aspects: Crafting the Art

• Many of Kush’s sculptures (e.g., the large dragonfly) are extremely intricate, with up to 88 separate bronze pieces welded together. (04:09-04:13)
• He often works on multiple pieces in parallel, assisted by a team, especially for complex sculptures and jewelry. (05:12, 05:29-05:30)

4. Books, Birds, and Inspiration

• His work "The Diary of Discoveries" features books transforming into birds — a metaphor for inspiration and the spiritual journey.
  • "The book gives us the wings to fly. It inspires us. It's a source of inspiration." (06:39)
  • The curtain in the artwork is likened to a sail: "Implying on a sail that takes us out on the journey of life. Journey of life. On that flight. Flight of life." (07:15)

5. Artistic Reach and Business

• Kush owns five galleries, uniquely making him a rare example of an artist sustaining multiple mono-galleries (exhibiting only his own work).
  • "It's hard to find in art industry any examples of the artist that owns his own galleries and sustains them." (13:09-13:20)
• Details locations: Caesar’s Palace (Vegas), Maui, Laguna Beach, Miami South Beach, Scottsdale, Arizona. (08:29-09:05)
• Shifted away from group events like Art Miami, focusing on personal gallery spaces. (09:13-09:32)

6. Experimenting with Digital and 3D Art

• Kush is exploring lenticular prints—3D/motion effects via special lenses—printed in Russia and brought to the U.S. (09:39-10:50)

7. Art Markets Amidst Geopolitical Change

• Russian art scene severely impacted by war, with many galleries shutting down and a dwindling market. Kush sees future growth in English-speaking countries, notably Australia and the U.K. (11:14-12:29)

8. Metaphorical Realism: Defining a Movement

• Kush distinguishes his style, metaphorical realism, from surrealism:
  • "Surrealism...deals with distortion or illustrating Freudian dreams...metaphorical realism...find a connection between ideas." (20:51-21:19)
  • Quotes Aristotle: "Metaphor is intuitive perception of likeness in the things that are different." (21:53-22:01)
• He believes people have a deep, sometimes unconscious, longing for metaphor and symbolism:
  • "People think they are surrounded by facts, while in reality they're walking through the forest of symbols. And I would add through metaphors." (22:35-22:59)

9. Clientele and Changing Trends

• His art appeals to both older collectors and an emerging younger audience—though he notes generational shifts in collecting habits and taste. (24:15-24:30)
• Metaphorical realism attracts buyers looking for meaning, not just decoration:
  • "They're not buying it just to decorate their walls...they are like a new family member." (25:16-25:28)

10. Community and Impact

• Kush runs large gallery events (200-300 guests), using speeches and storytelling to deepen connections with clients. (26:41-28:18)
• Runs art contests for children, emphasizing the power of imagination:
  • "When they absorb those ideas they are capable of reproducing them because they have no limitations." (28:52-30:20)
  • Shares a favorite Einstein quote: "Imagination is more powerful than the knowledge because imagination has no limits while the knowledge has some limitations." (30:47-31:15)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Artistic Creation:
  "Creative thoughts...are partially unknown to the artist himself and especially for the outsider." — Vladimir Kush (01:48)

• On Metaphorical Realism:
  "Metaphor is intuitive perception of likeness in the things that are different." — Aristotle, cited by Vladimir Kush (22:01)
  "People think they are surrounded by facts, while in reality they're walking through the forest of symbols. And I would add through metaphors." — Vladimir Kush (22:35)

• On the Power of Art for Children:
  "Their brain still has a much wider bridge between the emotional and intuitive side...they are capable of reproducing them themselves." — Vladimir Kush (28:52)

• On American vs. Russian Dream:
  "In Russia...somebody is telling the person, like, okay, don't worry about anything, just go to bed. In the morning, you will be...rich and famous and successful...what American dream is, is when people are with talent, they will be rewarded according to their talent and hard work." — Vladimir Kush (14:29, 15:08)

• On Imagination:
  "Imagination is more powerful than knowledge because imagination has no limits while knowledge has some limitations." — Albert Einstein, cited by Vladimir Kush (30:47)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00: Opening question on the American vs. Russian dream.
• 01:00–02:36: Creative process & symbolism of "Butterfly Apple".
• 03:13–03:46: Symbolism of dragonflies, Route 66, flight as transcendence.
• 04:09–04:21: Technical discussion on assembling bronze sculptures.
• 06:39–07:26: Inspiration and symbolism in "The Diary of Discoveries".
• 08:29–09:05: Overview of Kush’s five art galleries.
• 09:39–10:50: Foray into digital art and lenticulars.
• 11:14–12:29: Fallout of the Russian art market due to war, new markets.
• 20:51–22:59: Defining metaphorical realism vs. surrealism; importance of metaphor.
• 24:15–25:28: Discussion of art buyers and shifting generational interests.
• 26:41–28:18: Community events at Kush’s galleries.
• 28:52–31:15: Art education, children’s creativity, and Einstein quote on imagination.

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Tone & Final Thoughts

The conversation is thoughtful, poetic and quietly inspirational, mirroring Kush’s art. The tone is deeply reflective, with frequent philosophical digressions and an emphasis on intuition, symbolism, and the importance of imagination over mere fact.

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For more:

• Explore Vladimir Kush’s work and gallery locations at kushfineart.com
• Listen to the full episode for immersive stories behind each piece and more artistic insights!

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Transcript

[Foreigner Kush]

There we come to that question, what is American dream in comparison to Russian dream? In Russia, for instance, somebody is telling the person, like, okay, don't worry about anything. Just go to bed. In the morning, you will be rich and famous. I don't know if it's in the blood, but this is how people get rich over it. What American dream is will be rewarded according to their talent and hard work.

[Interviewer]

Foreigner Kush here today. Got a lot of art here. First artist on the show. Thanks for coming, man.

[Foreigner Kush]

Oh, thank you for having me.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, I'm. I'm getting into art now. So I was researching who's. Who's an artist in Vegas, and your name came up.

[Foreigner Kush]

Oh, I'm honored.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

You brought some beautiful pieces here. I don't even know where to start, but we got this. Is this a butterfly apple?

[Foreigner Kush]

It's a butterfly apple, yes. And the Route 66 here. And we have some other stuff.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Interviewer]

Which one of these is the most recent one you made?

[Foreigner Kush]

Recent sculpture is this. Oh, yeah, the butterfly apple. We just casted it. Not the idea, but the. The. The bronze itself.

[Interviewer]

How did you come up with that idea?

[Foreigner Kush]

This was. You know, this is a process that is hard to explain. You know, like. And then this piece probably is just the best to explain the creative process.

[Interviewer]

Okay.

[Foreigner Kush]

When the. If we imagine that the caterpillar's idea, then it goes into this apple and makes an invisible route inside. It's invisible to the artist himself. So sometimes it takes a long and very complicated route to make it to come out as a butterfly. Wings.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

As a butterfly.

[Audience Member or Guest]

I love that.

[Foreigner Kush]

So that. That's the reason I brought this piece and because it illustrates the creative thoughts, which is partially unknown to the artist himself and especially for the outsider.

[Guest or Assistant]

Right.

[Interviewer]

Because it's just subconscious thoughts. Right.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yeah. The fact is, that there's a butterfly is like a miracle. It's. That's why I'm comparing it to the life cycle of the butterfly. And butterfly is a symbol in many different cultures because of the. Of the fact that it illustrates the whole life cycle, from the caterpillar that is life, to the chrysalis that is death, and then to the butterfly that is revival and flight of the spirits.

[Interviewer]

You like the flying element now that I noticed, because you got this one. Got the. This is a dragonfly, right?

[Foreigner Kush]

This is a dragonfly, yeah.

[Interviewer]

And then behind you, we got some. Some books flying.

[Foreigner Kush]

So we have a butterfly, the dragonfly, and the bird.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yes.

[Interviewer]

You love the flight.

[Foreigner Kush]

We have this. Yes. Because it's. It's symbol. It's a symbol.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

What is.

[Interviewer]

What does the dragonfly symbolize?

[Foreigner Kush]

Well, it's. It's about overcoming a mundane of everyday life. I mean, even though the wheels is a symbol of exploring the earth, let's say. Because that piece is called Route 66.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

And it's actually famous. The bottom is. The base is molded from the real Route 66.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Oh, wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Well, as we know, that was romanticized by John Steinbeck back then. You know, the Route 66. And it's. The wheels is a way to get to explore the Wild West. Well, it's going on those wheels all the way to the Grand Canyon. It can fly over the Grand Canyon on those wings.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Mm.

[Foreigner Kush]

And the wings is a symbol of overcoming the everyday mundane and reaching the new heights.

[Interviewer]

I love that. Is this one made out of bronze, too?

[Foreigner Kush]

This is also a bronze. It has many parts to it. We have a large one that has 88 pieces actually welded together.

[Interviewer]

Oh, my gosh.

[Foreigner Kush]

Separately cast.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Interviewer]

We'll throw up a photo of that one on the screen.

[Audience Member or Guest]

That's.

[Interviewer]

That's impressive. 88 pieces.

[Foreigner Kush]

88 pieces all cast separately and welded together.

[Interviewer]

Someone took months to make, right?

[Foreigner Kush]

Oh, yes. It's a foundry that makes them, but we have to create each part separately and create a model each of those parts.

[Interviewer]

Was that the most time you've spent on one single piece?

[Foreigner Kush]

I'm doing compilation pieces, the paintings, where I put a lot of different ideas together. And especially from the painting, the paintings that has been done before. And in order for me to make it work in a new story and connect them together and organically coexist, that takes a long time. Sometimes such work may take up to three months.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Interviewer]

You need a lot of patience as an artist.

[Foreigner Kush]

But I. Parallel to that, I'm completing other small pieces too.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

So you're still working harder than ever right now.

[Foreigner Kush]

So I usually work on several pieces. And I. I do have help, of course, because it's impossible for the artist himself to do all the molding, let's say. Right. So I. I have people that are working for me that are helping to do sculptures, let's say.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

While the objects of art or jewelry.

[Interviewer]

What about the piece behind you? What's the story with that one?

[Foreigner Kush]

The Diary of Discoveries. Yes. So the book is a symbol in our life, A huge symbol. I'm not sure about new generation, but in old generation, I'm feeling myself almost. Almost an old guy in that sense. For the other generations, the book was symbol of many things. It's a diary of our Life, it's maps that we travel through. It is we, we are, we have a saying. You know, the metaphorical saying, we are turning the page of the history, or we're turning the page in exploration of cosmos. So we're literally using that metaphor to illustrate the image of book. So it comes to us through the image of the book. And so we are. The book gives us the wings to fly. It inspires us. It's a source of inspiration.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

And here the bird is a symbol, universal symbol of free flying spirits. Is, is taken off and turning into birds somewhere around the horizon. Hmm. Which I call a point of revelation. It's a point when we realize that we're not only material being, but also a spiritual. And we have wings.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

I love that. I, I, I believe we are spiritual beings as well. I love, I love that you incorporated that aspect into your art. That's really cool.

[Foreigner Kush]

And the curtain symbolizes. Implying on a sail that takes us out on the journey of life. Journey of life. On that flight. Flight of life.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

You've been, you've been making art for a long time.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yeah. This image was, was very popular. We, we already have a second edition on that and has been popular throughout the Internet even. There was a musician, Snowy White, I don't know, he used to play for Roger Waters. Oh, Coffee and Pink Floyd.

[Interviewer]

Heard of them?

[Audience Member or Guest]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

And he used, he used it as well on his.

[Interviewer]

Oh, the album cover.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Interviewer]

Is this a cd?

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

I haven't seen a CD in so long. Nice. Beautiful Snowy White.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yep.

[Interviewer]

Well done.

[Foreigner Kush]

So it's, it's a Most. It's a piece that has been in demand. The most.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

That's your top seller right now, I would say.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Interviewer]

Are these at the art gallery? Are people able to buy these?

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes, it's in the gallery.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Interviewer]

I want to stop a gallery here.

[Foreigner Kush]

And all our galleries, we have five.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow, five.

[Interviewer]

Now where are they located?

[Foreigner Kush]

One of them here in Caesar's palace in the Forum shops. The other one is in Maui, Hawaii, as a replacement to the one that burned in Lahaina.

[Interviewer]

You've had a store burned up, which.

[Foreigner Kush]

We had it for 23 years almost.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Since 2001. Then the gallery in Laguna beach that was open in 2005. Laguna Beach, California. Then we have Miami Beach Gallery, South Beach, Lincoln Road. And we have a gallery that's recently opened, is in Scottsdale, Arizona.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Interviewer]

Miami. I'll be there for art, Basil, this year. Do you do big events during that?

[Foreigner Kush]

Yeah, we did the, we did art Miami.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Foreigner Kush]

We did the whole run with this. Shows that are done by the same people basically. But I don't see myself doing it again because people who, you know, since we have our own galleries, I don't think it makes a big sense.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, it is a lot of work.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

What's the next step for you? Are you going to start doing digital art or do you have your eyes on any art?

[Foreigner Kush]

Oh, we did. We did some anime partial animation of art that we. We recently released the whole series of lenticulars. Lenticulars is when they printed on the. On the lenses and they give you impression of the 3D and even some movement in them. And that is. That hasn't been on the market.

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[Interviewer]

Go anywhere without it.

[Foreigner Kush]

In art industry. Very well developed yet. You can see it in art Miami sometimes, things like that. But they mostly even not printed in the United States. They have to be imported from somewhere. Those lenses. And we print them actually lately in Russia.

[Interviewer]

Okay.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

And we bring them here and it's. We are kind of establishing a market for them right now.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Is art big?

[Foreigner Kush]

Of course. Yes.

[Interviewer]

God.

[Foreigner Kush]

Of course. It requires the whole involvement of the graphic designer to make. To make it happen. But under my supervision of course.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

The art scene in Russia. What's that like over there?

[Foreigner Kush]

It's almost nothing. Especially with the war. It's actually came down and many galleries has closed.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Damn.

[Foreigner Kush]

Because since there's no market, the art over there has been sold to mostly a Forbes list of Russia. And I am. I'm dealing with a jewelry factory that is in Bangkok next to Tiffany's factories and Pandora's factories. But they have closed their location. Their gallery in Moscow after the war has started. Ukrainian war.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

Because the most of the people that were their clients, they moved out.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow. Dang.

[Interviewer]

I wonder what other countries are going to be the next market for art. Do you have your eyes on any specific.

[Foreigner Kush]

I would say that art market for the things that we do. The English speaking countries.

[Interviewer]

English speaking.

[Foreigner Kush]

English speaking. I Would say the whole set of like, you know, Great Britain, Australia, other ones that would be where we tested the market. And in Australia I have done a couple of shows.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Foreigner Kush]

With other galleries and they all were successful. Almost the same way how it is in the United States.

[Interviewer]

Do you ever collab?

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Do you ever collaborate with other artists or you just do?

[Foreigner Kush]

I used to exhibit other artists in my galleries before, but at a certain point about almost 15 years ago, there was a request even from our consultants to focus on specifically just my art. And we started to be. We became a mono gallery.

[Interviewer]

Mono gallery, those are rare, right?

[Foreigner Kush]

Mono gallery. It's rare. It's absolutely rare because it's hard to find in art industry any examples of the artist that owns his own galleries and sustains them.

[Interviewer]

Right. I feel like the art industry is one of the hardest industries to make a living in.

[Foreigner Kush]

It is hard because the, the community, the art market is not as huge as like book market.

[Interviewer]

Right. Or podcast.

[Foreigner Kush]

Podcast, things like that. Yeah. So it's a, it is, it's a.

[Interviewer]

Limited amount of people, very few.

[Foreigner Kush]

That's why art industry is very tight, very competitive.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

And talent isn't enough in the art industry. You need the right team, the right.

[Foreigner Kush]

Marketing, you need the right team, you need. There we come to that question of an American dream.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Foreigner Kush]

What is it? I just wanted to, to point out, like, what is American dream in comparison to Russian dream? In Russia, for instance, where I grew up, of course I went to schools. In all the fairy tales, there's a, there's a, there's a character that becomes rich overnight. So you just share luck, you know?

[Audience Member or Guest]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

Somebody is telling the person like, okay, don't worry about anything, just go to bed. In the morning, you will be, you will be rich and famous and successful. That's what happens. And I don't know if it's in the blood, but this is how people get rich over there, really. It's not through hard work and talent. So I never was into that too much. So for me, immigrating to United States was always, you know, was, it was a value.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Foreigner Kush]

So because I knew that what American dream is, is when people are with talent, they will be reaching, they will be rewarded according to their talent and hard work. And it's not only limited to even material well being, but also to, to this, to reaching out the dream to the dreams.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, absolutely. Was your family who they are?

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Was your family artistic, your parents?

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes. I grew up in a family that had artistic values. My father brought me up and I was sitting on his lap since I was 3 years old and finishing little drawings that he's. He sketched for me.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Interviewer]

At three years old.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes. I started to be a little bit different at that age already. And since then it runs on the whole my father's side of my family. I guess it's a little bit genetic.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

My grand grandmother has been. Has been. Has been an artist, but. But she never became a professional artist because in old times Russia, it was not popular for the woman to be. To be. To be an artist.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Pursue the career in that sense.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. They don't work over there, right?

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes. And. But since then, everyone was on my father's side. Has been drawing and inclined to art, poetry, literature. Even though my father was a specialist on differential equations. Part of his work was in Station Mirror, you know, that was hanging out in space.

[Guest or Assistant]

Oh, yeah.

[Audience Member or Guest]

For a while.

[Foreigner Kush]

And then he worked for space technologies in Russia.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Foreigner Kush]

But always inclined to poetry, to metaphors, to. That's how it started.

[Interviewer]

Who were your early inspirations when it came to poetry and art when you first started out?

[Foreigner Kush]

My inspirations were the artists that were showing in Russia who were called avant garde underground art. So there were big lines to see them. And my father would take me there and we will see the paintings that were painted by the artists that had more access maybe to. To see the Western art. So like let's say Salvador Dali or Magritte. Rene Magritte or other artists.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Foreigner Kush]

Like that from the modern times. But also I grew up around museums. We had museums in Russia and we had some classical art up to impressionists. And that also had a big impact. Impact on me because I. I studied art since I was seven.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Had our history lessons every. Every week.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

In our school. So we learned art from the ancient Egypt or from the ancient times even before Egypt and going up to almost modern times. But modern art was not accessible. Still interesting. It was a Soviet Union and it was closed. And the Soviets propaganda has never propagated.

[Guest or Assistant]

So it.

[Foreigner Kush]

Propaganda never propagated. People like Dalio Magrit Suralis.

[Interviewer]

Interesting. Even to this day. It's still like that over there?

[Foreigner Kush]

No, no, it's. It's wide open.

[Interviewer]

Okay.

[Foreigner Kush]

It's wide open for that because there's Internet and total access to everything. But.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, that makes sense. Ancient art. I want to see what that looks like.

[Foreigner Kush]

Ancient, like I would say, cliff art, you know.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

The caveman thing with cave art. Yes. Yeah, we even studied that, you know, to begin with.

[Interviewer]

How did they do it? Like they need extreme heat.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Right.

[Interviewer]

To paint in the cave walls. It's really, really hard rock.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yeah. They used other rocks too.

[Interviewer]

Other rocks.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Interesting.

[Foreigner Kush]

And scratched on it.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Interviewer]

I wonder if that stuff is worth any money these days.

[Foreigner Kush]

But yeah. And later on, you know, of course, Renaissance art was. Was studied very thoroughly.

[Interviewer]

Did your art take off right away when you started selling it?

[Foreigner Kush]

No. Is. You know, some scientists discovered that it takes about 10 years of perseverance and knocking in the wall in one place before you will see the results. And therefore I would say that the whole 90s, that's what it took me to get to a different level.

[Interviewer]

That's a long time.

[Foreigner Kush]

I came to us officially immigrated in 1990. 1990, that I started to. To do that work that led me to metaphorical realism somewhere on the edge of 1998. And this is when while I found that metaphorical realism. That's formula for me. That is when I took off.

[Interviewer]

That is what these are. Metaphorical realism.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

This style is called metaphorical realism.

[Interviewer]

So you were one of the first pioneers of that style.

[Foreigner Kush]

I would say Salad Ali experimented with this in the early stage of his life, but he's never pursued that. So he was a classical surrealist. So there's a big difference between surrealism, which deals with distortion or illustrating Freudian dreams. I would say.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

And metaphorical realism, which is mostly positive side of visionary art like that. Positive side because we deal with metaphors. I do not distort art, but find a connection between ideas. As Aristotle once said, what is metaphor? He defined it in the most transparent way. He said, metaphor is intuitive perception in the things that are different. Likeness. Intuitive perception of likeness in the things that are different.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Therefore, I'm looking for interplay of ideas of different ideas and connecting them, which resonates with people greatly because they also grew up on fairy tales. And there's. I think it's a big demand in the society for this type of arts because people, when they grow up, they forget about their dreams.

[Interviewer]

Right.

[Foreigner Kush]

They go into. Into the life of facts. They think they're surrounded by facts. But as that famous dramatist, Henry Miller has put it, he said that people think they are surrounded by facts, while in reality they're walking through the forest of symbols. And I would add through metaphors.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Metaphors exist primarily what people think. In the world of linguistics, we use metaphors in everyday life. Even that simple metaphor, time is money. It's already a metaphor in linguistic. But since a visual impact on people is more power. Powerful than words, Visual metaphor has even more impact. So I consider myself as a. As a inventing, as the one who. Exploring visual metaphor.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

What it does to people.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Interviewer]

The power of a metaphor. Yeah. It can really make you think a good metaphor, Right?

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes. Because they. People recognize their own thinking. You know, when they walk into the gallery, they usually the first impression is like, oh, I. It's. It. It feels like I have seen it before, maybe in my dreams, but I just could not realize them.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

I could not just express them. And now I see it right here on canvas in front of me.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow. I love that.

[Foreigner Kush]

And that's what triggers, you know, by our client base.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Who. Who's your client base? Is it a lot of older guys?

[Foreigner Kush]

Some older. Some. But we. We have younger audience as well.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

These days you need that.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Right.

[Interviewer]

Because our generation, I wonder if we collect art as much as our parents. Probably not, right? No, the millennials.

[Foreigner Kush]

You know, there's a trend going on, like in the Western art, let's say, you know, the people, the older generation, they collected Western art, but now their kids are collecting different art. But that's what they would start, what they like.

[Interviewer]

Yeah, we're collecting art. We're collecting anime and NFTs and weird art. Yeah, it's. I like art, though. I. I like. I'm also a businessman, so a lot of art is. Is good for appreciation too, you know. So when I collect art, it. It also holds its value well, which I like, but I. I mainly collect things I like. The symbolism is important to me. If it means something.

[Foreigner Kush]

Absolutely. That's what people are buying metaphorical realism for.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

They're not buying it just to decorate their walls. Interior designers rare.

[Interviewer]

They're going off market now. We got AI.

[Foreigner Kush]

Our paintings or sculptures. They're jumping off. They're just jumping on you. They are like a new family member, I would say.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

This would take over.

[Foreigner Kush]

That's why they're not popular with interior designers. Because then for interior designers, they're looking for just a bright spot on the wall that's matching the furniture.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yes.

[Foreigner Kush]

If. If there's a meaning and a message that's contradicting their purpose.

[Interviewer]

Yeah. Something like this or the statue here would take over the whole room. You put it in there.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yeah. It will be a focal point.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

As soon as someone walks in, they're going to be like, what is that?

[Foreigner Kush]

It's a point of conversation too.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

Why?

[Foreigner Kush]

People like it because their neighbors and friends are seeing it and it's a point of conversation.

[Interviewer]

Absolutely. If you could meet any artist and talk to any artist, dead or alive. Who would it be? Would it be Dali?

[Foreigner Kush]

Dali was very special in. In a way. So for communication.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

As a person. So it would be hard to talk to him.

[Interviewer]

Oh yeah, he couldn't talk.

[Foreigner Kush]

But definitely a genius.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah, definitely.

[Interviewer]

Well, a lot of artists are like that.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Right.

[Interviewer]

They're super smart and they can't articulate through words as well as their, their paintings and their art.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yeah, it's. It's common how the. In our industry the shows are done. These artists are usually in a little place there. They're limited, you know, by. To meet only the collectors. The collectors that bought, they're coming just shaking their hands and they're taking pictures and that's it. You know, we started to do the shows and mostly it's done in Arab Gallery in Laguna beach in California. And those shows used to be even full production. But full production means that like with the stage and video presentation and the speech.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

So I, I talked to the people that are coming, coming in the. The RSVPs. Sometimes we have up to 300 people, 200 to 300 people standing there and listening to the speech. And I am presenting the new art and telling the stories about creating it and where it comes from. Mythology that is related to this poetry and world culture that it's connected to.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Interviewer]

You're very inclusive. You have like a community.

[Foreigner Kush]

Yes. I mean we have, we have a quite a client base that are very loyal to us.

[Interviewer]

That's cool.

[Foreigner Kush]

There will be. If I'm doing those shows two, three times a year, there will be a big crowd.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Usually.

[Interviewer]

What's the next show? What's the next thing you're working on right now?

[Foreigner Kush]

Just past weekend we did that show in Laguna Beach. It's a two day show, Saturday and Sunday.

[Interviewer]

Got it.

[Foreigner Kush]

We did present the new paintings, new sculptures. And one of those sculptures is right here. Butterfly Apple.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Nice.

[Interviewer]

Is you got a website too for people watching to check out?

[Foreigner Kush]

I asked. Absolutely. It's cushfineart.com amazing.

[Interviewer]

We'll link it below. Anything else you want to close off with. Thanks for coming today.

[Foreigner Kush]

I would say that when you asking about the generations that are reacting to it, I would say that the younger generation, especially kids, are very susceptible to this, to this art. They are reacting to this very vividly because their brain still has a much wider bridge between the emotional and intuitive side. And therefore they have a much wider bridge, much more open and free imagination. And therefore when they absorb those ideas they are capable of reproducing them because they have no limitations. They capable of reproducing them themselves. And they start drawing and coming up with more ideas. This was a base for the contest that I once did in Las Vegas with School District of Nevada when we had a contest and I presented the work online, which is called where the Sun Goes. And I gave that theme to the kids and they. They distributed it through the school system. And we had a lot of submissions, all different kinds of. We reserved the space in the gallery for the winners. It was. Those works were remarkable.

[Audience Member or Guest]

Wow.

[Foreigner Kush]

Quite remarkable. And I invited the kids to come over to the gallery and you know, like for them to be hanging. To have their artwork hanging in a gallery, in art gallery. That is something that had never happened to them.

[Audience Member or Guest]

I love it.

[Foreigner Kush]

But some gifts for those kids unfortunately didn't continue because of the. You know, that is not supporting arts. Of course.

[Guest or Assistant]

Yeah.

[Foreigner Kush]

But I would. I would say that one of the greatest quotes regarding imagination is coming from. Albert Einstein said imagination is more powerful than the knowledge because imagination has no limits while the knowledge has some limitations.

[Interviewer]

I love that. That's a great quote. We'll end with that. Thanks for coming on, man.

[Foreigner Kush]

I appreciate it, dude. Thank you.

[Interviewer]

Y.

[Foreigner Kush]

Thank you for having me.

[Interviewer]

Absolutely. Check out the galleries, guys. Check out the website. I'll see you next time.

[Show Host or Announcer]

I hope you guys are enjoying the show. Please don't forget to like and subscribe. It helps the show a lot with the algorithm.

[Foreigner Kush]

Thank you.