For the first time in almost a decade, Ukraine will present its own pavilion named "Before the Future" at the Biennale Architettura 2023.
The exhibition Before the Future presents to the public two spaces — the Pavilion in the Sale d’Armi, Arsenale and an installation in the Spazio Esedra, Giardini— which formally quote unusual structures that, following russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have become emblematic of feelings of safety for Ukrainian society.
These spaces will provide a forum for a dynamic public program bringing together more than thirty Ukrainian architects, artists, and specialists from numerous fields to work with subtopics informed by the Biennale Architettura 2023’s main central concept—the Laboratory of the Future. The Pavilion of Ukraine proposes to draw our attention not simply to the future, but also to the conditions of the past and present that provide the safety necessary for the construction of the future.
The name of Ukraine's Pavilion is a response to the general theme of this year's edition because the future cannot be imagined without Ukraine. We live with the concept of "life after victory" and contribute to the image of this future every day.
For the world, Ukraine has become a new and powerful participant in the common life, transforming the image of the future in Europe and the world.
This year’s exhibition is curated by Iryna Miroshnykova and Oleksii Petrov, of the Kyiv-based architectural office ФОРМА, and Borys Filonenko, independent curator, art critic, lecturer, and editor-in-chief of IST Publishing.
Iryna Miroshnykova, Oleksii Petrov and Borys Filonenko
All three curators were also part of the team of last year’s Pavilion of Ukraine with Fountain of Exhaustion. Aqua Alta, an exhibition of artist Pavlo Makov at the 59th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Two spaces have been made available for these proposed dialogues, actions and interventions.
The installation at the Arsenale finds the normally lofty hall transformed into a dark, low-ceilinged space that enfolds the viewer in the safety of a closed sky and thick walls— physical barriers to harm. The structure manifests what the Pavilion team refers to as a “new comfort”, where claustrophobic, windowless, or even previously abandoned spaces can become vital sites for incubating plans for survival and hope for the future.
In the Giardini, an earthworks installation under the open sky focuses similarly on the perceptual transformations that have occurred in Ukraine regarding formerly overlooked elements of the built and natural environments.
The intervention draws on the form of the Serpent's Wall, a network of 10th century fortifications in Kyiv region that the centuries have weathered into simple mounds and hills snaking through rewilded local landscapes. Once largely forgotten by contemporary residents of Kyiv, the buried functions of these mounds were reactivated during the first days of the full-scale russian invasion, slowing the invading army’s advance towards the capital.
"Our attitude to the space has changed. Living under a permanent threat from the open sky has made us to perceive space primarily as something that can provide protection. In a safe space, we can share stories, listen, learn, enjoy and appreciate everyone around us," the curators emphasized during the program presentation.
In these spaces, at different times during the Biennale Architettura 2023, representatives of the Ukrainian cultural community will tell stories from inside their paradoxical context, sharing their experiences with the whole world.
The participants will present their visions in different formats. It will be an open program, the script of which will be developed over the six months.
In total, more than 30 Ukrainian architects and representatives of other disciplines will work on the public program, which will soon be presented in its detailed form.
For the world, Ukraine has become a new and powerful participant in the common life, transforming the image of the future in Europe and the world. Through the Pavilion of Ukraine, the country shares its hopes for a future free from aggression and war. It is a testament to the strength and determination of the Ukrainian people to build a better world. By taking part in this event, Ukraine reaffirms its belief in the power of culture to unite nations and inspire positive change.
Team
Commissioner — Mariana Oleskiv, State Agency for Tourism Development of Ukraine
Curators — Iryna Miroshnykova, Oleksii Petrov, Borys Filonenko
Future Participants — Nikita Bielokopytov, Daria Borovyk, Oleksandr Burlaka, Alex Bykov, Vadym Denysenko, Oksana Dovgopolova, Nina Dyrenko, Uliana Dzhurliak, Ivan Grabko, Dmytro Gurin, Dana Kosmina, Sasha Kurmaz, Petro Markman, Nataliia Mysak, Anton Oliynyk, Oleksii Pakhomov, Mariia Pakhomova, Ivan Protasov, Daryna Pyrogova, Kateryna Semenyuk, Vadym Sidash, care collective, commercial public art, Prykarpattian Theater, The Center for Spatial Technologies, and others
Deputy Curator, Program Coordinator — Kateryna Ulianova
Deputy Curator — Maria Lanko
Architects/Researchers — Kyrylo Khivrych, Yelyzaveta Perel, Yuvhene Pichkur, Iryna Shershakova
Landscape Architect — Hanna Popenko
Visual Identity — Fedoriv marketing ↺ innovations Producer — Ilona Shneider
PR & Communications management — Ksenia Iefremova Facilitators — Insha Osvita
General Editor — Clemens Poole
With the Support of
La Biennale di Venezia
Ministry of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine United Nations Development Programme
Program and financial support from the government of Japan
Charitable Organization Charitable Fund Pavilion Kultury
ФОРМА
ist publishing
SAME & Friends
NGO Museum of Contemporary Art
“Ukraine. Out of blackout”. Cultural program
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Press release and images courtesy of the Ukranian Pavilion
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