Protagonists. Picturesque Reserve/Paris Commune” is a large-scale exhibition about two leading creative associations of the late 1980s - early 1990s. The project will present about 50 authors and 300 works created at the turn of the eras. Most of the works were never exhibited.

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Representatives of these two bright artistic phenomena broke Soviet dogmas, brought individuality and creative freedom to the fore. The plenary ceremonies in Sydney in 1988, 1989 and 1991 were an important milestone for both future associations. Even then, the difference began to be felt, which in a few years would determine the nature of the art of the “Picturesque Reserve” and the “Paris Commune”.

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Building 18A on Mikhailovsky Street (then the Paris Commune) became the first Kiev squat, where Alexander Gnilitsky, Valeria Trubina, Oleg Golosey, Alexander Klimenko, Dmitry Kavsan, Leonid Vartivanov, Yuri Solomko and others entered. They were also joined by art critic Alexander Solovyov, who is co-curator of the exhibition “Protagonists”. Life in squash was bohemian — there was an atmosphere of parties, sexual revolution and psychedelic experimentation.

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Unlike the “Paris Commune”, whose authors were united by a physical place, the territory of the “Picturesque Reserve” had signs of a spiritual toponym. Representatives of the “Reserve”, despite the emergence of new methods in art, remained faithful to the pictorial tradition — hence the name of the group. The association included Tiberii Silvashi, Anatoly Kryvolap, Alexander Zhivotkov, Nikolai Kryvenko, Marko Geiko.

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Exhibition “Protagonists. The Picturesque Reserve/Paris Commune” is a unique opportunity to see live the works of contemporary art, which today have become documents of the era. The exhibition formed a unique collection of museum-level works, most of which had not been exhibited before, because the works entered private collections immediately from art workshops.

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It is important that the artistic activity of the protagonist associations in the exhibition is considered through the prism not of confrontation, but of coexistence and development in the context of that time. The project aims to fill the white spots in the history of modern Ukrainian culture and to focus attention on the art of transition, which was created at the tectonic fault of the epochs and was dispersed for a long time. A holistic look at the work of the participants of the associations “Painting Reserve” and “Paris Commune” once again proves that contemporary art is an important and integral part of the cultural heritage of Ukraine.

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Artists and artists: Alexander Babak, Vasily Bazhai, Yana Bystrova, Leonid Vartivanov, Gleb Viseslavsky, Anatoly Gankevich, Marko Geiko, Alexander Gnylitsky, Oleg Golosey, Igor Gusev, Dmitry Dolfan, Alexander Zhyvotsky Sergey Zhyvotkov, Roman Zhuk, Ilya Isupov, Dmitry Kavsan, Pavlo Keresti, Alexander Klimenko, Pavel Kovach, Mykola Kryvenko, Anatoly Kryvolap, Maksym Mamsikov, Lev Markosian, Vladimir Muzhesky, Alexander Nechayenko, Sergey Panich, Viktor Pokydanets, Kirill Protsenko, Valentin Raievsky, Konstantin Reunov, Alexander Roitburd, Vasyl Ryabchenko, Arsen Savadov, Andriy Sahaydakovsky, Sergey Svyatchenko, Sergey Semernin, Georgy Senchenko, Tiberii Silvashi, Marina Skugareva, Yuriy Solomko, Oleg Tistol, Mykola Trokh, Valeriya Trubina, Natalia Filonenko, Group “Fomsky” (Pope Vlo Fomenko, Igor Kaminnyk), Alexander Kharchenko, Vasily Tsagolov, Ilya Chichkan.

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The opening of the exhibition will take place on May 16 at 18:00.

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Curators: Alisa Grishanova, Valery Sakharuk, Stanislav Skoryk, Alexander Solovyov, Svetlana Starostenko.

Organizer: National Center “Ukrainian House”.

Project partners: JSC “Oschadbank”, Visa.

Technical partner: Ergo.

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Working hours:

Tuesday — Sunday from 11:00 to 19:00,

Monday is a day off.

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Ticket price:

full — 100 UAH,

preferential — 50 UAH (for schoolchildren and students).

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Entrance is free for:

pensioners, children under 7 years old, persons with disabilities of 1-2 groups, participants in the liquidation of the consequences of the Chernobyl accident, combatants, ATO participants and members of their families, servicemen of military service, museum workers, members of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine, holders of membership cards CIMAM, ICOM, AICA (with valid ID).

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