DECOLONISATION OF UKRAINIAN ART АND CULTURAL DIPLOMACY

Abstract

The article examines the current problem of decolonisation of Ukrainian art. Recently, the number of statements on the topic of Russian influence on every sphere of cultural life in Ukraine has increased significantly. The words “soft power”, “cultural expansion”, “appropriation”, and “decolonisation of art” are now heard not only by specialists. Russia’s appropriation of Ukrainian monuments and names (and, today, the removal of works from museums from the temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories) has been ongoing and has become widespread. Thanks to the current activity, artists are returning to Ukrainian culture, not only those with a Ukrainian identity, but also those who have been influenced by Ukrainian art or who have influenced artistic processes in Ukraine. First of all, these processes relate to the art of the avant-garde in Ukraine and artists such as K. Malevich, D. Burliuk, O. Ekster, O. Arkhipenko, V. Tatlin, O. Bohomazov and others, who are united under the brand “Russian avant-garde” in museum institutions around the world. The author outlines the trend and gives examples of changes in the definition of artists’ belonging to Ukrainian culture (Stedelijk Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA). Ukrainian heritage is in evacuation during the Russian-Ukrainian war. It cannot be seen in Ukraine (most museum exhibitions are closed), but it is being discovered all over the world. Various events, projects, exhibitions, and performances abroad that have taken place since Russia’s full-scale invasion are considered. A number of such events were organised by Ukrainian artists, curators, and museum workers with the assistance of foreign institutions (projects at the Venice Biennale, exhibitions “In the Epicentre of the Storm: Modernism in Ukraine 1900-1930s”, “Kaleidoscope of Stories. Ukrainian Art 1912-2023” and others), a number of projects were conducted by foreign curators on their own initiative, which showed solidarity with the Ukrainian people. The factual material in this article is based mainly on personal impressions of art projects or communication with Ukrainians who have experienced the support and assistance of the international community.