Rarely has an event accompanying the Venice Biennale, a so-called “collateral event”, represented such an important addition to the main program as “This is Ukraine: Defending Freedom”. Because without the show of art from Ukraine and some works by international artists, there would have been a gap in the program of the 59th Biennale. Since the Russian attack on Ukraine on February 24, the Russian invasion has finally determined the political and media agenda. The Belgian curator Björn Geldhof describes the ad hoc show as a “difficult project at a difficult time”, which shows a whole series of works from the more recent Ukrainian art scene, including works by the author and photographer Yevgenia Belorusets, who was born in 1980 painter Lesja Chomenko of the same age and the artist and author Nikita Kadan, who was born in 1982.
“We conceived, prepared and installed the exhibition in less than four weeks.”
In Venice, the presentation is intended to address both the Russian invasion of Ukraine and to promote solidarity with the country under attack. “We conceived, prepared and installed the exhibition in less than four weeks,” said Geldhof, who has been the artistic director of the Pinchuk Art Center in Kyiv since 2015. The curator said at a press conference last Thursday before the vernissage in the Scuola Grande della Misericordia, a magnificent historic building from the early 14th century in Cannaregio, his team worked partly from Kiev air-raid shelters. Originally, the presentation of the so-called “Future Generation Art Prize” was planned here, which has now been replaced by the current project.
Founded in 2006 Pinchuk Art Centre is considered the first Ukrainian museum for contemporary art and is owned by the Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Pinchuk through a foundation. On Thursday evening, the entrepreneur and patron of the arts personally moderated the opening with several guests, including 96-year-old Holocaust survivor Anastasia Gulej, who had to flee to Germany because of the war, and Luigi Brugnaro, the mayor of Venice. The dramaturgical highlight of the opening ceremony was a pre-recorded one with English subtitles Video message from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
In his brief speech, Zelensky emphasized the uniqueness and importance of art as a medium for discourse on Russia’s aggressive war and Ukrainian defense. “There is no tyranny that would not try to limit art. Because they can see the power of art. Art can communicate things to the world that otherwise cannot be communicated. It is the art that conveys feelings.” Zelensky, who spoke in front of a screen with Ukrainian colors in an olive-green military uniform, thanked the organizers of the exhibition and everyone involved and asked for solidarity from the international art world. “I am sure that the exhibition will make people feel what it means for Ukraine to defend freedom. You will feel the bond between all free people on planet Earth and Ukraine. You will feel that each individual of you can support the fight for freedom – one and the same freedom for all. Support us with your art, but also support us with your words and your influence.” After the clip, sustained applause rose in the hall.
In addition to the official, somewhat hidden, Ukrainian Biennale entry on the Arsenale site, where an installation by Pavlo Makow is on view, and the temporary “Piazza Ucraina” set up in the Giardini, a structure of charred wood and stacked sandbags that stands alongside a brightly colored advertising sculpture of a Swiss watch company, “This is Ukraine” gives the war theme in Venice an appropriate framework.