Secondary Archive: Women Artists in War

UA artists: Katya Buchatska, Katya Libkind, Lucy Ivanova, Olha Marusyn, Anna Ivchenko, Inga Levi, Daria Molokoiedova, Marharyta Polovinko, Dasha Chechushkova, Olia Yeriemieieva, Sana Shahmuradova Tanska, Yuliia Danylevska, Kateryna Aliinyk, Viktoriia Rozentsveih, Karina Synytsia. PL artists: Magdalena Franczak, Katarzyna Kozyra, Małgorzata Pawlak, Ewa Zarzycka, Marta Zgierska. Curators: Alya Segal, Waldemar Tatarczuk. Partners: Artsvit Gallery, Katarzyna Kozyra Foundation.

The exhibition Secondary Archive: Women Artists in War sheds new light on the art of women who, amidst the backdrop of war, transmute their experiences into a universal and timeless artistic language. It brings together diverse perspectives, encompassing female artists directly impacted by war and those from Poland, who encounter conflict on a distinct level.

The female artists participating in the exhibition do not directly portray the war in their works—images from battlefields or the aftermath of Russian missile attacks on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure unfortunately no longer evoke profound reactions. However, the loss of their homes and forced displacement inevitably influence the artists’ creative endeavors. They delve into memories of home and childhood while exploring novel avenues for commemorative practices.

Moreover, the war accentuates not only the significance of home but also compels a re-evaluation of the concept of land. Landscape, soil, and geographical areas have emerged as prominent subjects for Ukrainian artists today.

Additionally, the body, a perennial subject for female artists, appears in a distorted and altered form due to the war. Artists reassess their relationship with their bodies, sex, care, and the human body as an object of war.

Within the exhibition, Polish female artists, grappling with similar themes of home, body, and land, engage in a dialogue with their Ukrainian counterparts. This exchange unveils deeper connections between Ukrainian and Polish cultures and underscores the tendency in Eastern European art to confront sensitive topics and foster a discourse on collective female solidarity.

The exhibition is part of the ongoing Ukrainian edition of the Secondary Archive project. Initiated by the Katarzyna Kozyra Foundation, this project aims to research and archive the art of predominantly Central and Eastern European women, spanning from World War II to the present. The archive, available at secondaryarchive.org, comprises statements by female artists, shedding light on lesser-known aspects of their biographies and creative practices—narratives often margina, neglected, forgotten, or little known to the general public. On March 15, 2024, fifteen Ukrainian women artists predominantly working with experiences of the full-scale Russian invasion joined the platform. “This is a crucial project as it not only spotlights women’s artistic practice in Ukraine but also archives the intangible heritage of wartime from a female perspective. It allows for real-time reflection on the experiences and changes in the work of women artists after February 24, 2022,” explains Iryna Polikarchuk, director of Artsvit Gallery in Dnipro.

The project Secondary Archive. Women Artists in War is supported by the European Union as part of the House of Europe programme.