Milk and Roses

Such is the title of an exhibit open at the Modern Art Center. It consists of two separate curator projects: Art of the Whisper (Anatoly Sloiko) and Illumination (Olha Soloviova, Stanislava Beretova, and Tetiana Kryvenko).

Early this year, the Modern Art Center, in collaboration with the Pro Helvetia Foundation, staged a contest for an exhibit by young Ukrainian curators, to feature works by artists aged under 28. The exhibit is held at the center with its complete technical and partial financial support. The title, Milk and Roses, defines the objective: a fresh impetus to the young generation of curators and artists, prompting young theoreticians to work in modern art. As a result, two exposition projects were selected, built on total different curator concepts and featuring different artists.

Art of the Whisper relates to things intimate, private and public, an attempt to reproduce the mechanism of the whisper. Actually, it is a very simple human voice relay which, the authors believe, will help the visitors share their whispered impressions with an anonymous audience or hear someone’s whisper without identifying the person. A system of tubes makes it possible to convey private messages without knowing if they are received and by whom. The project curator says, “Whisper is an opportunity to have privacy in a public place, never meeting your interlocutor face to face.” The exposition also includes video tapes and photos meant to add to the intimate atmosphere created in public.

Illumination, in contrast, is based on the curators’ concept that “contemporary reality is devoid of mystery, secrets, etc. It is so very transparent and banal.” An important feature of this reality lies in the large number of its authors; it is a metaphor of the modern world. The exposition offers a variety of creative forms: paintings, photos, light installation, media performance, light objects, and audio compositions.