Veronika Hapchenko was taking part in the exhibition "বন্যা/Bonna" organized by Dhaka Art Summit.
3 - 11 February 2023
Chief Curator: Diana Campbell
shelter is a large-scale painting by Veronika Hapchenko which commences her new series devoted to Soviet era avant-garde mosaics and murals in Ukraine. Once speaking of a bright, peaceful future, they are now being destroyed in the course of Russian invasion and bombardments. shelter is Hapchenko’s interpretation of the mosaic Windfighter (ukr. Boryviter, also known as Kestrel - a bird fighting wind). Created by monumental painter, dissident and human rights activist, Alla Horska (1929 - 70) for Mariupol’s restaurant Ukraina, it was wrecked by shelling in July 2022. Hapchenko's triptych features a dynamic group scene with two women and two birds flying towards their breasts. Their long hair strands and the birds' wings form a protective layer over other human figures. The muscular female bodies hint at the strength of those who fight, and those who flee Ukraine to protect their children.
The painting was commissioned by Kanal - Centre Pompidou for the VIII Congress of Women: The Feminist Ukraine. New Geopolitical sisterhood - that took place in Brussels in December 2022. 100% profit from the sale was donated to the organization Divchata (Kyiv-based NGO devoted to education of teenage girls in Ukraine). This generous donation was possible thanks to Samdani Art Foundation, which acquired the work to the collection.
The Dhaka Art Summit (DAS) is an international, non-commercial research and exhibition platform for art and architecture related to South Asia. With a core focus on Bangladesh, DAS re-examines how we think about these forms of art in both a regional and an international context. Its sixth edition is the first edition with a Bangla subtitle; বন্যা/Bonna.
