A beautiful tapestry triptych Kyi, Shchek, Khoryv, and Their Sister Lybid made by a unique artist Ivan-Valentyn Zadorozhny was presented at the fifth Biennale of Historical Painting that took place this year. Before this tapestry along with the Old Rus’ idols made in encaustic painting technique (wax painting), a hall decorated in Kyivan Rus’ style also made by Zadorozhny adorned the walls of the hotel Lybid. If you would now go to the hotel you wouldn’t find all of that there. It has been all renovated in a modern style.
Fifth all-Ukrainian Biennale of Historical Painting “Ukraine from Trypillian Culture to Present Days in Paintings of Modern Artists” is not as advertised as exhibitions of contemporary art. When Ukrainian contemporary art gained recognition at the public level, everybody forgot nearly right away (though it is not for a fact that they remembered before) about its main founder – school of traditional Ukrainian painting. “Business is business” – this formula is often used to describe contemporary art. And that is not a reason for moralization, however, we should understand that contemporary art does not represent all of Ukrainian modern art. There are many talented artists in Ukraine, who continue to work in traditional style. They, to a large extent, just like in Soviet times, still belong to the underground, only not because of persecution, as it was in the past epoch, but due to the artificial marginalization.
However, not everything is so simple and pessimistic.
Among the participants of the Biennale of Historical Painting there are artists of old generation as well as very young ones. In time, when Ukrainian film industry is limping on both legs, painters, in fact, are the only ones capable of professional visualizing Ukrainian history. This year’s exhibition, where nearly 240 art works were presented, is devoted to the 1,160th anniversary of Ukrainian statehood.
“Ukrainian artists, unfortunately, often avoided the topic of Kyivan Rus’,” says Volodymyr PRIADKA, artist of monumental and decorative art and a teacher. “They gave it up in favor of our northern neighbors, who claimed their right for our history, for the name Rus’, and created significant artistic works collection beginning with Viktor Vasnetsov, who drew painting based on the motives of ancient folk epics. After him this topic was picked up by other artists, including Ivan Bilibin. Ukrainian artists stayed away as if it was not our history.”
“Thanks to this exhibition young students have, in fact, expressed themselves,” said Oles SOLOVEI, artist, one of the Biennale curators. “The aim of this exhibition is to give future perspective for young artists. This is realized through a return to historical sources and ability to see yourself among other masters. Of course, this also motivates young people.”
The most interesting fact, according to Solovei, is that at the present exhibition most of the displayed works were made by students from Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, and the Crimea. “It is not by chance that it is often said that the revival of Ukraine begins from the southern, eastern, and central regions,” said Solovei.
For curators and participants Biennale is practically a voluntary work. There is virtually no state order for the existing works, art dealers are not interested in them. While at the top level the state programs for promoting patriotism are approved, even though they do not specify exactly what kind of patriotism, there are people who implement this concept in real actions. However, there is another important fact. The lack of state funding does not stop young artists. Young artist from Kharkiv School of Painting Kateryna Tkachenko thinks that “if we gave up this idea only because there is no state order and funding, we would never create things we already have. Yes, that’s right, there is no support, nobody buys our painting for big money, but we know that we are doing something big – this work won’t go into nowhere!” This project, as she stressed, is a unique opportunity for Ukrainian people to better understand the country they live in.
“With this exhibition we want to show that Ukrainians need to artistically reflect on our history because it is not limited only to the Cossack wars of national liberation,” added Priadka. He thinks that artists should go back to “folk epics and tales and draw, like Jan Matejko did in Poland,” grand history of their own country.
