Through personal experiences of war and emigration, the Ukrainian project at the Biennale Arte 2024 explores concepts of unity, resilience, and collective action during a conflict.
The Pavilion is structured around the work of four artists. Work by Oleksandr Burlaka is an architectural installation made from linen fabrics dating back to the 1950s. The choice of materials evokes Ukrainian tailoring traditions, symbolizing a culture striving to maintain its roots despite adversity. The film Civilians. Invasion by Daniil Revkovskyi and Andrii Rachynskyi tells the early days of the Russian invasion through the retrieval of videos found from open-source and private YouTube channels. With Best Wishes, a project realized in collaboration with a group of neurodivergent individuals, Katya Buchatska focuses on the problematic use of linguistic clichés during wartime. Finally, Comfort Work by Andrii Dostliev and Lia Dostlieva analyzes the stereotypical perceptions regarding Ukrainian refugees abroad. In addition to the main project at the Arsenale, the Ukrainian Pavilion, in collaboration with the creative agency Bickerstaff.734, has launched the Bomb Shelter Map of Venice, distributing a series of red flyers throughout the city indicating locations that could serve as bomb shelters. In one of the most beautiful, safe, and tourist-mapped cities in the world, the Bomb Shelter Map serves as a powerful counterpoint and a reminder that peace can never and nowhere be taken for granted.
