Ukraine: Short Stories

The exhibition “UKRAINE: SHORT STORIES. Contemporary artists from Ukraine”  is a sign of closeness to the Ukrainian population and its art community.

Ukraine. Short Stories is a survey, curated by Solomia Savchuk, (head of contemporary at Mystetskyi Arsenal, a contemporary art center in Kyiv) of the contemporary Ukrainian art scene through works created specifically for the Imago Mundi Collection by 140 artists in the typical format that characterizes it (10×15 cm).

Fondazione Imago Mundi has always had a sensitivity for urgent contemporary issues, so the Ukrainian collection came to life at a particular historical moment for the country’s affairs. The works are strongly linked to the events of 2014 with which Ukraine was forced to measure itself, and to the profound changes that this country, a delicate crossroads between the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea, has gone through in recent years.

The exhibition presents 140 works created by young and emerging artists and established authors already present in the most important international museums and galleries who, with strength and passion, reflect a society that is reinventing itself, through instability, ideological and social changes, cruel conflicts, constantly looking for new ways to deal with history, and assert new artistic freedom.

With a range of styles and techniques from optical effects to landscape sculptures to the magic of 3D, the artists’ individual narratives become the creative tiles of a grand narrative of Ukraine today. The collection gives an account of Ukraine’s artistic and cultural complexity, offering an interesting, representative, and symptomatic cross-section of it that is still relevant today.

The exhibition project includes 3 phases: the first at the MAXXI in Rome, the second one on the water of the canals of Venice, and the third one at the Gallerie delle Prigioni in Treviso, the exhibition site of Fondazione Imago Mundi.

Rome, MAXXI Museum

From Thursday 10 March to Monday 25 April 2022, the exhibition has been hosted at the MAXXI in Rome with a symbolic ticket of € 5. The proceeds have been donated to the fund for the humanitarian emergency in Ukraine set up by UNHCR Italy – UN Refugee Agency, UNICEF Italy, and the Italian Red Cross.

“Art and culture speak a universal language, which unites peoples in the sign of dialogue, rejecting all forms of violence”
[Giovanna Melandri, President of Fondazione MAXXI]

Venice

To express closeness to the Ukrainian population and to its art community, on Friday 22 April 2022 Fondazione Imago Mundi exhibits “Kollina” on a boat: the sculpture of the Ukrainian artist Olexa Furdiyak, in the canals of Venice.

It is a welded metal sculpture created in 2013 by the Ukrainian artist Olexa Furdiyak. It measures 4 meters in height and weighs about 300 kg.

“Kollina” (“knee” in the Ukrainian language) recalls the pose in which the honors were received, a solemn position that can only be assumed by a free person, who pursues justice. The sculpture also has arms perpendicular to the body, as a sign of openness and freedom.

As the artist himself explains: “Openness and determination are intrinsic characteristics of free people. Independence and freedom are of primary importance for human existence”.

The presence of this work in Venice was made possible by Fondazione Imago Mundi. “Kollina” was brought to Italy from Ukraine at the beginning of April with a journey made by the team of Fondazione Imago Mundi, thanks to the collaboration with the curator Solomia Savchuk.

Treviso, Gallerie delle Prigioni

On Friday 6 May 2022 ultil 29 May 2022, the sculpture made by the Ukrainian artist Olexa Furdiyak entitled “Kollina” arrives in Treviso, where it is exhibited in the square at the entrance to the Gallerie delle Prigioni, the exhibition venue of Fondazione Imago Mundi.

The exhibition “Ukraine: Short Stories. Artists from Ukraine” acquires a new form, including the following exhibited works:

• the Imago Mundi Collection Ukraine, returned to Treviso  from Rome
• the sculpture by Olexa Furdiyak
• a series of watercolors by Yurii Ivantsyk

Opening hours: Friday 15:00 – 19:00; Saturday and Sunday 10:00 – 19:00.
From Friday 6 May 2022 util 29 May 2022