Presentation of the Ukrainian project, “In the Eye of the Storm. Modernism in Ukraine 1900-1930’s”
The main aim of the project is to show Ukrainian modernism as a unique art phenomenon that has lain too long in the Russian shadow. The first comprehensive display of Ukrainian Art from the beginning of the 20th century to be shown in the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum, Madrid, Spain.
The exhibition will comprise around 100 works from leading Ukrainian museums, as well as Western public and private collections. The exhibition will be produced in partnership with Ukrainian institutions, National Art Museum of Ukraine, Mystetskyi Arsenal Museum Complex, Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Centre, and others.
The Ukrainian Institute will present an extensive film programme focusing on Ukrainian modernist cinematography. In addition, comprehensive catalogs will be published in English.
The exhibition includes works by Ukrainian artists: Oleksandr Bogomazov, Olexandra Exter, Volodymyr and David Burliuk, Victor Palmov, Vasyl Yermуlov, Anatol Petrytsky, Vadym Meller and others.
The curatorial group includes Dr. Konstantin Akinsha (USA/Italy), art critic and co-founder of the Foundation for the Study of the Avant-Garde, Kateryna Denysova, PhD Candidate at the Courtauld Institute of Art, and Olena Kashuba-Volvach, PhD in Art Studies, Head of the Department of of Art of early 19th-20th cent. at the National Art Museum of Ukraine.
The other participants of the presentation are: Guillermo Solana, artistic Director at the Museo Nacional Thyssen Bornemisza in Madrid, Andriy Adamovskiy, Ukrainian philanthropist, collector, James Butterwick, British collector, expert in the field of the Ukrainian modernist tradition, Tetyana Filevska, creative director at the Ukrainian institute, Natalia Shpytkovska, director of M17 Contemporary Art Center, Kyiv.
The joint organisers of the presentation are the charity foundation “Art for Victory UA” and M17 Contemporary Art Center in Kyiv.
The partners of the presentation: Beyeler Fondation, Natalia Cola Foundation, Ukrainian Institute, Artcult Foundation, Artelia consultancy and Ukrainian project “Strong & Precious”.
Beyeler Fondation oversees the art collection of Hildy and Ernst Beyeler, which features modern and tribal art as well as comprehensive holdings of works from 19th – 21st centuries
National Art Museum of Ukraine is a state cultural institution with a leading collection of Ukrainian art from the Middle Ages to the present. The main aspects of the museum’s activities are the collection, study, preservation, exhibition and provision of educational services in the art field.
Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum is an art museum in Madrid, Spain, with over 1,600 paintings. The museum’s collection includes many artworks by leading artists of European and North American modernism. The museum presents art series by famous Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo painters, West artists from the 18th and 19th centuries.
Mystetskyi Arsenal Museum Complex is Ukraine’s flagship cultural institution that brings together various arts – from contemporary art, new music and theater to literature and museum development. The mission of the Mystetskyi Arsenal is to contribute to modernization of Ukrainian society and Ukraine’s integration into the global context based on the axiological potential of culture.
Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Centre is the largest Ukrainian film archive with an extensive collection that includes 7,000 feature films, documentaries, Ukrainian and foreign animated films and thousands of archival records from the history of Ukrainian cinema.
Ukrainian Institute is a public institution affiliated to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. Its mission is to strengthen Ukraine’s international standing through the means of cultural diplomacy. The Institute facilitates international connections between people and institutions and creates opportunities for Ukraine to interact and cooperate with the world.
M17 Contemporary Art Center is a cultural institution that functions as an educational and research platform and exhibition venue for Ukrainian and foreign contemporary art. The activities of the Center are aimed at creating a dialogue between professional circles and all agents of the culture sector. M17 supports art experiments, collaborations and international exchanges for experts and artists from various art fields to integrate Ukrainian art into a world context.
Natalia Cola Foundation, established by philanthropist and arts patron Natalia Cola, was founded in 2019 to support institutions that value tradition, while championing new artists; ways of thinking and encouraging open discourse. It currently partners with The Serpentine Gallery and The Royal Academy.
“Strong & Precious” is a project that presents Ukraine as a country with strong creative potential. The main idea behind “Strong & Precious” is to consolidate the wide range of Ukrainian jewellery designers that popularise local traditions on an international stage.
“Art for Victory UA”, is an independent, non-profit, charitable foundation established with the aim of supporting and promoting the existence and survival of Ukrainian culture in the current war.