Shcherbenko Art Centre

MOTHERLAND EXHIBITION
PAPOILA BAR. LISBON, PORTUGAL
THE OPENING – 24/08/2023, STARTING 6 P.M.

Shcherbenko Art Centre in cooperation with JetSetter.ua proudly presents the ‘Motherland’ – a video exhibition of Ukrainian artists to be held at the Lisbon-based ‘Papoila Bar’ on the occasion of the Independence Day of Ukraine.

Over the years of Ukraine’s Independence our nation has been walking a long and difficult path of struggle. We’ve been standing together for our sovereignty. And all these 32 years we, Ukrainians, have been filling such notions as ‘democracy’, ‘fight for freedom’, ‘sacrifice’ and ‘self-sacrifice’ with actual meaning – not just by words, but by deeds and civic resolve. We’ve come to realize the high cost of our liberty.

Today – yet again – we reflect on the meanings of ‘freedom’, ‘will’, ‘power of resistance’, and ‘right to life’. Have they changed their meaning? What exactly are we fighting for? From the very first days of russia’s full-scale invasion of our home country, we realized that this is a war of destruction, annihilation, a blatantly genocidal attempt to wipe us from the face of earth. Therefore, we’re left with no choice! If we want to survive, we must fight to defend ourselves and our loved ones! In this war, Ukrainians are fighting for much more than independence – this is an outright fight for life, for our existence. For us, independence is the very basis of the National future.

The artworks presented within the ‘Motherland’ project include: “Lviv Diary” by Vlada Ralko; “Forest, Forest” by Maria Stoianova, “Bad Games or Swan Song” by Lena Kovach, “Lustration / Ablution” by Maria Kulikovska (at the ShchAC Kyiv, 2020 and Linz, 2022); “Inconvenient People” by Alyona Naumenko and Maryna Talutto; “Letters” by Marina Talutto; “No Name Ritual” by Maria Proshkovska; “Explosions Near The Museum” by Yarema Malashchuk and Roman Khimei; “How Will We Remember?” by Piotr Armianovski.

‘After watching the video series “Motherland”, the viewer will gain an understanding of how enormous the catastrophe of this war is. The evil that is now flowing from russia into the whole world through Ukraine is limitless in its expression: theft, torture, murder, humiliation, rape. Most of the videos that I have selected focus on the consequences of the russian occupation of our homeland, but I’ve also wanted to show you that we have a strong sense of hope and confidence in our Victory. So, I’ve chosen videos that shape the image of Ukrainians today: our power of resistance, our longing for home, our courage, and the closeness of our family relationships. This is a great opportunity to make a video screening and celebrate Independence Day in the new ‘Papoila’ space in Lisbon,” – says Maryna Shcherbenko, the project curator.

“Up until now there was no place in Lisbon for adequate presentation of the Ukrainian contemporary artists and for proper showcase of the Ukrainian contemporary culture as a whole. Even though we haven’t completed the full renovation of our space, we decided to hold the exhibition as a pop-up event because we couldn’t ignore such an occasion as Ukraine’s Independence Day. All of us here support our homeland, our native country, as much as we can! And we find it extremely important to share the emotions of our National holiday with the local community – the Portuguese, the guests of the city, and the Ukrainians who have found refuge in Portugal and other European countries. Together with the Shcherbenko Art Centre, we are presenting a video collection of works by contemporary Ukrainian artists dedicated to their native land. I hope that cooperation with the ShchAC will lead to new and bigger projects in the future that will extend beyond the pop-up format,” – Anna Ganopolska, co-founder of ‘Papoila Bar’, adds.

On August 24 at 6:00 p.m., we are opening the ‘Motherland’ – a pop-up exhibition of social video art by Ukrainian authors, accompanied by special DJ sets by Lisbon artists Matvii and Bob Valentynov.