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Nadezhda was produced for the exhibition Horizons of Reality at M HKA in 2003, featuring works by contemporary Russian artists. Zvezdochotov created his piece especially for the high-ceilinged space where it is now once again installed. He refrained from making a ‘pure’ painting on canvas and opted instead for a combination of patterned textile and figurative painting, ensuring that the piece can be moved and shown elsewhere. Nadezdhda is a portrait of Zvezdochotov’s infant daughter.

‘We decided to call our daughter Nadezhda (which means “hope” in Russian), which was also my mother’s name. […] I went to my mother’s house, showed her [my daughter’s name in my] passport and said: “Mother, you are now my daughter.” In response she smiled, but said nothing, and three days later she had a heart attack. But everything went well, and she could be saved.’ (February, 2003)