Ukraine: The Path to Freedom
27 Ukrainian artists
This exhibition presents the wealth of Ukrainian photography throughout five decades. It begins in the 70s, at the moment when Ukrainian visual art began to publicly express its own language, and ends with the war that engulfs the country now.
For centuries, Ukraine has been continuously fighting for its own identity, freedom, language and state borders. The Eastern part joined the then forming Soviet Union after the revolution in 1917-1918 while the Western part joined by military force in 1939.
The Ukrainian Socialist Republic went through a long period of eradicating national identity and formation of new images, new symbols, propaganda and new ‘Soviet’ identity. Old narratives were destroyed, historical facts were manipulated, and those who did not share the new ideology eliminated, literally or by silencing their voices through deportations and other means.
When the Soviet Union fell, Ukraine declared its independence. On August 24, 1991, a new stage of development and restoration of the lost identity began.
‘Ukraine – The Path To Freedom’ looks at the period of the country’s independence, from the first attempts at a revolution in its photographic language in the 70s to the present day. It visualizes key events in the history of Ukraine and looks at the development of photography during this period. The exhibition aims to show how the socio-political and artistic life in the country are intimately connected.
The show consists of four parts, corresponding to four recent historical periods and offers the works of several generations of Ukrainian authors. It shows how photography acts on multiple social levels: as a method of recording changes, as a form of protest, a personal story, a reflection on events and a political statement.
Art is a mirror of society and especially photography can be a means towards deeper cultural understanding and engagement. It tells us how Ukraine is travelling along a historical path of struggle for freedom, for its borders, the right to exist, culture and future. As recent events prove, the price of this struggle is high.
During the exhibition, the second edition of ‘The Information Front’ will appear, a more documentary publication series with work by local photographers on the war and the path towards it.
‘Ukraine – The Path to Freedom’ pioneers an approach from a Ukrainian historical perspective.
Work from the following photographers can be seen during the exhibition: Alexander Chekmenev, Andrii Dostliev & Lia Dostlieva, Andriy Lomakin, Boris Mikhailov, Dmytro Kozatskyi, Elena Subach, Evgeniy Pavlov, Kirill Golovchenko, Lisa Bukreyeva, Maxim Dondyuk, Mila Teshaieva, Mstyslav Chernov, Mykhaylo Palinchak, Mykola Ridnyi, Oksana Parafeniuk, Oleksandr Suprun, Paraska Plytka-Horytsvit, Rita Ostrovska, Roman Khimei & Yarema Malashchuk, Sasha Kurmaz, Valeriy Miloserdov, Viacheslav Poliakov, Viktor & Sergiy Kochetov and Vladyslav Krasnoshchok.
The exhibition is curated by Kateryna Radchenko (Odesa Photo Days Festival) and Wim Melis (Noorderlicht). It is a coproduction between Noorderlicht and Foundation for Old Groningen Churches, in cooperation with Odesa Photo Days Festival and The Information Front.
Tickets to ‘Ukraine – The Path to Freedom’ can be purchased here or at the exhibition desk.
The Information Front
The second volume of The Information Front, Ukraine: the path to freedom, is now available. This independent publication series portrays the important events in Ukraine’s history. Proceeds from this book will be donated to The Depths of Art, an institution that supports Ukrainian culture, including photographers. Read more here…
