Damien Hirst, Sky Over Corn Field, 2022, private collection; photo artnews.com
On April 23, the PinchukArtCentre and the Victor Pinchuk Foundation will open the exhibition "This is Ukraine: Defending Freedom" at the Scuola Grande della Misericordia in Venice. The project, implemented in partnership with the Office of the President of Ukraine and the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, is part of the official accompanying programme La Biennale di Venezia and will take place instead of The Future Generation Art Prize@Venice 2022.
The exhibition, which runs until August 7, will feature works by Ukrainian and international artists "in the context of national history and culture."
Among them: Nikita Kadan, Stefan Meditsky, Boris Mikhailov, JR, Marina Abramovich, Eugenia Belorusets, Damien Hirst, Olafur Eliasson, Takashi Murakami, Maria Pryimachenko, Lesya Khomenko and Tatiana Yablonska.
“The exhibition confirms the cultural stability of Ukraine, which has always, even in the most difficult times, been expressed in the ability to think critically and create. Rejecting direct accounts of the war, the artists at the same time, deeply analyze their significance, origin, and influence. The exhibition "This is Ukraine: Defending Freedom" tells about strength, creation, and friendship. But above all, it is dedicated to our collective freedoms - the freedom to choose, the freedom to speak, and the freedom to exist," - said the event organizers.
