Recently, Artsvit gallery director Iryna Polikarchuk returned from a two-week networking trip to France and Germany. As part of a delegation of Ukrainian curators, she visited Paris, Dunkirk, Lille, Düsseldorf, Cologne, and Berlin to establish connections in the field of visual arts. Ten Ukrainian professionals from Kyiv, Dnipro, Odesa, and Lviv visited leading cultural institutions, met with government officials and local artists, and visited leading local museums and galleries, art studios, and cultural centres.
The group accompanying Iryna Polikarchuk included Anastasia Manulyak, Natalia Matsenko, Kateryna Yakovlenko, Kateryna Radchenko, Alya Segal, Lidiya Apolonova, Tetiana Voloshina, Alisa Gryshanova, and Pavlo Gudimov. They visited institutions specialising in residencies, education (formal and informal), collecting, photography, site-specific art, large-scale research and political projects, as well as the Paris+ contemporary art fair by Art Basel, among others.
An important goal of this trip was to establish a network of partners (institutional or individual) who will help advocate for Ukraine's interests, counter Russian propaganda today, and undermine the ‘achievements’ of Russian culture. The search for allies in rethinking Ukraine's artistic heritage abroad, which Russia has attributed to itself for years. Revitalising dialogue between European and Ukrainian cultural centres and figures, with a focus on the context of Russia's war in Ukraine. This involves a series of discussions on how to support Ukrainian artists and culture in general, and how to prevent Russia from promoting its narratives.
Project partners: French Institute in Paris, French Institute in Ukraine, Goethe-Institut and Ukrainian Institute
Photos: Iryna Polikarchuk, Anastasia Manulyak, Ksenia Yanko/ copyright: Goethe-Institut
