Multidisciplinary project within the residency “Umanska 35/20”, 2025
Excerpt from the curatorial text (translated into English):
“A Blossom from Numb Branches” is a line from a poem by Ivan Svitlychny, in whose memory the residency “Umanska 35/20” is dedicated. These words evoke the idea of the Sixtiers (shistdesiatnyky) as a garden of Ukrainian culture. Though the blooming of this garden was interrupted, we are still able to witness its beauty and nourish ourselves with its fruits. Reflecting on the legacy of the Sixtiers means gazing into what was lost and contemplating what was gained — a process that is both life-affirming and bitter.
The exhibition unfolds across different temporal dimensions, telling stories of the connections between the Sixtiers — among themselves and with us. What do we see when we search for their traces in a neighborhood significant to the topography of this generation? And what can what we uncover tell us about ourselves — their descendants and inheritors?
The ceramic sculpture installation “Petals of a Blossomed Reverie” is a reflection on the theme of gardens and the Sixtiers movement. It is an associative series where memories intertwine with imagination — where there are hearts for bullets and for rhymes, and where crosses bloom in gardens.
“In the Light of the Garden” is a self-published collection that brings together the poetry of Ivan Svitlychny and Mykhailo Osadchyi. It intertwines the cultural contexts of Kyiv and Sumy region, my native land. To create the visual component of the collection, plants and artifacts — envelopes and letters, fragments of tin cans — found in Kyiv and Sumy region were used to reflect the connections between people and places.
Documentation of a trip to the village of Kurmany. During the residency, it was important for me to explore the local manifestations of the Sixtiers movement in the region where I was born and raised. This led to an interest in the work of Mykhailo Osadchyi — a talented poet, writer, and literary scholar originally from the Sumy region, specifically the village of Kurmany. I decided to travel to the village to learn more about the historical and cultural context in which Mykhailo worked, as well as to hear from people who personally knew the writer and his family.
The Sixtiers were people who cultivated the gardens of Ukrainian culture and identity. During the exhibition opening, together with the team and local residents, we planted flower beds and set up greenery. This participatory practice was aimed at creating a space of care and remembrance dedicated to the Svitlychnyi family.
Exhibition photo documentation: Olena Vakhnina
Video: Sasha Falchevskyi
Curators: Anastasiia Leliuk, Svitlana Dovhan, Kostiantyn Kuchabskyi
Participants: Anastasiia Baklazhko, Oleksandr Tsiuper, Ruslana Kliuchko