Ivan Bazak
Ivan Bazak is an artist, director, and set designer working in various fields, including performance, video, painting, sculpture, and photography. He lives and works in Berlin. In his work Ivan addresses social and political themes, drawing on a wide range of sources of history, memory, and tradition. As a director and set designer, Bazak has worked for the Hannover State Opera, the Deutsche Oper in Berlin, the Volksstheater in Vienna, and other theaters in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Italy. His works have been exhibited at the Soros Center for Contemporary Art in Kyiv, the Cologne Art Gallery, the Ostwald Museum in Dortmund, the Arsenal Gallery in Bialystok, the Kunsthalle in Vienna, the Kunsthalle in Düsseldorf, the Lodz Biennale and the Venice Architecture Biennale, and many other exhibitions and festivals around the world.
Backstage of Historical Events
2023,
installation
I found interest in the visual history around the Minsk agreements. After all, decision-making places are not only about decisions but also about circumstances, small actions, and scenography. The Palace of Independence in Belarus was built in 2013. There is a hall where press conferences on the Minsk agreements took place. In all the photos and videos, only one wall is visible. This wall with gilded “signs” refers to pagan runes, rituals, and symbols. Similarly, in the Soviet Union, there was a return to the pagan form of ritual at the level of party aesthetics. The entire scenography around the Minsk agreements and events is thoroughly documented in the protocols. It is a theater in which everyone’s participation is described in detail. In my work, I focus not so much on agreements but on the importance of the backstage for history. Entering the room and standing in front of the wall with flags, the viewer ends up on the “stage” where the play Minsk Agreements was performed. Each viewer is invited to feel like an actor in this play.
Asortymentna kimnata
October 7–October 30
On The Periphery Of War
Curated by Alona Karavai, Roman Khimei, Yarema Malashchuk, Anton Usanov
