The Taste of Success

The presentation of the Passage (Perekhid) art project was held in the National Art Museum. A curious mixture of show and elite posing was how one could best describe that Saturday evening at the museum. A string quintet played in the lobby, admittance tickets sold at $80 each, and the gathering public looked oh-so bourgeois. The reason for the spectacle was Passage, a vernissage of three Kyiv artists Petro Bevza, Oleksiy Lytvynenko, and Mykola Malyshko showing their latest works. The organizers made one feel somewhat confused: little known in the artistic milieu are the International Women’s Club and Spanish Language Group. The works on display occupied one hall at the National Museum and were the graphic result of the mastering by the Kyiv creators of modern art techniques. The central installation, which seemed the sense axis of the exhibition, bore the name “White Passage” and was made of strictly earthly objects: threads, feathers, potatoes, and fragments of mirrors. The walls bore more evidence of the talent of Bevza and Lytvynenko: non-figurative and semi-figurative canvases, along with photo-reports on actions carried out by the artists in rural areas. According to Passage ideologue Petro Bevza, “the benchmark of the project is the Ukrainian heritage.” Not counting the potato-mirror-fragment installation, the tradition was more visibly embodied by wood sculptures created by 62-year-old Mykola Malyshko. Present in these works was a true desire to perceive traditions, inasmuch as “objects” combining simple wood with white paint and a somewhat weird abstract form can be “traditional.” By and large, Passage can be regarded as precisely such a project, without doubt a successful one, with prospects for a good sequel. Two more shows are planned in other large exhibition halls of the capital. Also, the enigmatic organizers intend to arrange for an extensive tour of the display, including Poland, Germany, and France. The merits of what was shown at the National Museum can be subject to debate, but one quality of the Passage heroes is indisputable: their skill in building their own success, which, without doubt, can and should become inherent in our Ukrainian art management, scarce as that skill now is.