THE WALL
Ukrainian Institute and cultural agency Port. agency to launch The Wall, a street art project in five cities: Vienna, Berlin, Marseille, Brussels and Nairobi.
About the project
The Wall is a symbol of resistance, stability, and armor that fences off Europe from the war. At the same time, the title refers to the Pink Floyd cult album, a rock opera that tells about a hero who is fenced off from the whole world by a wall behind which he copes with his inner demons. Ukraine is dealing with an external demon. But the metaphor allows us to start a dialogue about the world’s attitude towards Ukraine as “us and them”. We wish to rethink and look at the mental and historical wall that still separates us. And which must be eliminated so that we feel like a single community.
In order to create murals well-known Ukrainian and international artists are invited to find a common voice that will speak about freedom, democracy, and unity. This symbolic co-creation is aimed at lighting up the alliance and mutual benefit of Ukrainian and European collaboration at all levels: between individuals, communities, businesses, and countries.
Aim of the project
The project aims to show that Ukraine is part of the European Union community. Ukraine and the EU have a lot in common, the same values, goals, and rights. In order to emphasize their similarity, while maintaining the individuality of every side, Port. attracted 10 well-known Ukrainian and European street artists who’ve created projects in order to show that the idea of interaction and synergy exists not only in theory but is also embodied in this project, where it goes through about co-creation, alliance and mutual benefit same way as wanting it in a bigger scale – in the cooperation between countries.
Initiators
Supported by
“The murals are our response to russian barbaric aggression on the cultural front in the civilizational war which putin has launched. The policy of destruction and elimination of Ukrainian identity is one of russia’s key elements in the war against Ukraine. In our temporarily occupied territories, russian invaders close Ukrainian schools and impose their language and history. Just like they did for centuries regarding Crimean Tatars whose cultural heritage, history and traditions were simply denied. If and where the invaders cannot physically throw their collars, they simply resort to terror. Thus, since February 24 russian invaders damaged 87 religious sites, 13 museums, 38 historic buildings, 38 buildings dedicated to cultural activities, 18 monuments, 10 libraries, 2660 educational institutions. The list is growing every day. Today Ukraine is fighting not only for the right to exist but defends its right to be a family member of Europe”,
Mural in Vienna
The Wall / Vienna – first of 5 murals-symbols was opened in the center of Vienna on November, 2.
Address: Pfeilgasse, 1, 10801 Wien, Austria.
Ukrainian artist Nikita Kravtsov in collaboration with French comics artist and filmmaker Vincent Paronnaud rethought Gustav Klimt’s famous female portraits to pay tribute to the most prominent Austrian artist, and added Ukrainian and European symbols to reflect the common past. The mural illustrates a bright future, freedom, and a positive sense.
photo credits: Valerie Maltseva, Nikita X Calle Libre
Nikita Kravtsov
Nikita Kravtsov is a Ukrainian artist, the creator of the illustrations of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. He illustrated criminal news in leading online media, participated in the Art Kyiv Contemporary and the ARSENALE Biennial of Contemporary Art. Nikita is the author of animated clips, and mini-films, and created collaborations with music scenes and fashion world brands. Lives and works in Paris.
Vincent Paronnaud
Vincent Paronnaud a.k.a. Winshluss, is a French comics artist and filmmaker. Paronnaud is best known for co-writing and co-directing with Marjane Satrapi the highly acclaimed animated film Persepolis (2007), for which they received numerous awards including the Jury Prize at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.
Mural in Berlin
The Wall / Berlin – second of 5 murals-symbols named “Flower of Democracy” to was opened in Berlin on November 6.
Address: Hotel Continental – Art Space in Exile, Elsenstraße 87
In Berlin, Ukrainian artist Andriy Kalkov in collaboration with German illustrator Dennis Schuster (DXTR), created the mural with the main focus on an abstract sunflower to represent Europe’s fundamental rights and rights of democracy in general.
“I wanted to create something positive and beautiful, that’s why I chose to use a flower as the main focus of the artwork. A sunflower as a symbol of the beauty of life in general. At the same time, the flower is something precious and fragile and needs to be protected.”, – Dennis comments.
“The Wall” is a visionary and meaningful project in a time when Europe faces a period of erecting new borders – physically as well as mentally. „The Wall“ sets a bright sign for cooperation and solidarity between Ukraine and Germany and our common values of democracy and freedom. We are happy and proud to host this project at „Hotel Continental – Art Space in Exile“ in Berlin. May the „Flower of Democracy“ bloom in our countries.” – says Christine Dissmann, Director of „Hotel Continental – Art Space in Exile“
photo credits: dpa – Christoph Soeder
Mural in Marseille
The Wall / Marseille – third of 5 murals-symbols named “Unfolding Windows” opened in the center of Marseilles on November, 22.
Where: Marseille, France, 7 Rue du Petit
In Marseille, Ukrainian artist Danylo Kovach in collaboration with Brazilian artist Julia Mota Albuquerque co-create a mural “Unfolding Windows”, the main concept of which is about the future and values: unity, peace, and freedom. The illustrations that are planned to cover the wall were inspired by the design principle of “Unity”. Unity is a principle of design that aims to unify all elements within a piece of work, much like the union in between Ukraine and the rest of the world. Puits, 13002
“My work is based on bold and bright colors that accompany squiggly, simple characters. Colorful plants and colorful people are important themes in the universe of my drawings. They represent my strong connection with the nature and colors of Brazil. They are also easily translatable into some of my favorite themes to work with, like diversity, inclusivity, sustainability, and socially focused projects. But for this project specifically, I am looking forward to translating these bright colors and abstract symbolism into an idea of a bright future for Ukraine, together with the rest of the world», – Brazilian artist Julia Mota Albuquerque says.
Mural in Brussels
The mural named “Grow in Freedom” in Brussels on February 24, 2023, to commemorate of the one year of the full-scale invasion of russia in Ukraine.
Where: Rue Haute 290, 1000, Brussels
In Brussels, famous Ukrainian street artists Sestry (Sisters Feldman) Nicole and Michelle Feldman, in collaboration with Belgian illustrator Theresa Sdralevska created the mural “Grow in Freedom.”
This mural portrays the connection between Ukraine and Europe in the heart of Brussels. Ukraine is now defending the very roots of Democracy and has a substantial cultural potential to share with other European countries. One can find symbols in the mural –Tarot cards, clouds, poppy flowers, and irises. The visual worlds of the three artists come together harmoniously; the picture is not split in two but has been conceived in a spirit of dialogue and collaboration.
“My motivation in participating in this project is my way to emulate people like them; our collaboration (being someone who works primarily alone) is a symbolic response to speech and actions that aim to divide and create tensions. This mural is a handshake, an image that recalls fundamental principles by connecting them to the present situation and a particular country.” – Teresa Sdralevich comments.
photo credits: Valeriia Scherbina
