Presentations: Office Ukraine. Two Years of Support for Ukrainian Artists

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Community

The publication Office Ukraine. Two Years of Support for Ukrainian Artists is a joint project by the three Office Ukraine offices in Vienna, Graz, and Innsbruck and was published in July 2024 by Verlag für moderne Kunst / Vienna.

The publication provides a comprehensive overview of the diverse activities of Office Ukraine during the first two years of its existence. In the context of the approximately 270 events presented, the diverse collaborations between Ukrainian artists and cultural workers and (mostly) Austrian institutions are also made visible. In addition to contributions from the team, numerous Ukrainian artists and supporters also recount their experiences. A personal essay by author Tanya Malyarchuk and a contribution by linguist Ruth Wodak on current trends in international migration policy complement the information gathered in the publication.

The book aims not only to share the experiences of two years of work with those who wish to build similar initiatives for other (artistic) communities at risk, but also to take a stand against becoming accustomed to this war being waged in Europe.

The publication was made possible through the generous support of the Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sport (BMKOES).

In the course of fall / winter 2024, five public book presentations in Vienna, Innsbruck, Linz, and Graz were organized by Office Ukraine and the BMKOES. The presentations of the publication were followed by panel discussions with Ukrainian artists, activists, and representatives of Office Ukraine. The talks focused on the situation of displaced artists, European solidarity, and support for the Ukrainian art scene in Austria.

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Office Ukraine. Two Years of Support for Ukrainian Artists
Book presentation at Secession / Vienna, September 25, 2024

At the book presentation at Secession, Georg Schöllhammer / Office Ukraine Vienna, Andrei Siclodi / Office Ukraine Innsbruck, and Johanna Hierzegger / Office Ukraine Graz – after a welcome address by Eva Blimlinger / member of the National Council on behalf of BMKOES – talked about the beginnings of Office Ukraine and highlighted the intention of the book project.

The presentation primarily focused on the people and institutions that have worked with us and supported us.

The introduction to the book was followed by a talk with Judith Kohlenberger / migration researcher, Vienna University of Economics and Business, and Georg Schöllhammer, who discussed the increasingly restrictive global migration policy and the consequences for Ukrainian cultural refugees in Austria.

As the concluding program item, Ukrainian artist Kateryna Lysovenko gave an insight into her artistic work and her situation as a displaced cultural worker living in Austria in a talk with Veronika Dirnhofer / Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, and Susanne Jäger / Office Ukraine Vienna.

Mark Napadenski / Office Ukraine Vienna guided the audience through the evening. After the official program, Ukrainian finger food and drinks were served to the more than 90 visitors.

We would like to thank the Secession for supporting the event.

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Information stand of BMKOES and Creative Europe Desk Austria in cooperation with Office Ukraine at Buch Wien, November 20–24, 2024

From 20 to 24 November 2024, the BMKOES was represented at Buch Wien, Austria’s largest book fair, with a joint stand with the Creative Europe Desk, which focused on Ukraine in 2024, supporting Ukrainian organizations, artists, and experts from the cultural and creative sectors in dealing with the current and future consequences of the war.

The BMKOES and the Creative Europe Desk Austria took up this topic in cooperation with Office Ukraine as part of their presence at the fair and gave visibility to Ukrainian artists, writers, and filmmakers and their works – also through the visual design of the stand with illustrations by Ukrainian artists living in Austria. Special attention was paid to children’s books translated from Ukrainian into German. The Office Ukraine publication, which was also on display, gave visitors an insight into the work of the initiative since 2022.

A selected film program in cooperation with Cinema Service Platform GmbH – KINO VOD CLUB, which presented films funded by Creative Europe, literary adaptations in a European context, and works by Ukrainian filmmakers, provided cinematic inspiration.

In addition, two events organized by BMKOES and Creative Europe Desk Austria took place during Buch Wien. The first, on November 21, entitled Drehbuch trifft Literatur – Fokus Ukraine and organized in cooperation with drehbuchFORUM Wien, was a discussion between film and theater director Nina Kusturica and Ukrainian filmmaker and children’s book author Iryna Tsilyk on the challenges and possibilities of cinematic storytelling.

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A lost glove, or the meaning of solidarity
Office Ukraine. Two Years of Support for Ukrainian Artists
Discussion at Buch Wien 2024 / Donaulounge, November 24, 2024

At the book presentation of the publication by Office Ukraine, also initiated by BMKOES and Creative Europe Desk Austria, the participants of the panel discussion, attended by more than 80 visitors, discussed the situation of displaced Ukrainian artists in Austria.

With: Tanya Malyarchuk / author, Oksana Maslova / children’s book author, Roman Trubchaninov / musician, and Georg Schöllhammer / Office Ukraine Vienna; moderator: Simon Mraz / art historian and member of the steering group of Office Ukraine.

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Office Ukraine. Two Years of Support for Ukrainian Artists
Book presentation at Literaturhaus am Inn / Innsbruck, November 25, 2024

In her presentation of the publication, Anastasiia Diachenko / Office Ukraine Innsbruck explained the extensive work of Office Ukraine to around 70 visitors and presented some of the numerous collaborations with artists and institutions throughout Austria.

This was followed by a talk about the contemporary publishing world in Ukraine, the activities of members of the Ukrainian literature scene in the diaspora, and the importance of international collaborations.

Participants: Kseniya Kharchenko / writer, translator, and cultural manager; Oleksandra Terentyeva / political scientist / LFU Innsbruck and initiator of the community center and library Hnizdo.Innsbruck; moderation: Veronika Riedl / Office Ukraine Innsbruck.

Andrei Siclodi / Office Ukraine Innsbruck guided the audience through the evening. After the official program, drinks and Ukrainian food were served.

We would like to thank the Literaturhaus am Inn for supporting the event.

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Office Ukraine. Two Years of Support for Ukrainian Artists
Book presentation at Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz, December 5, 2024

After a welcome address by Hemma Schmutz / director of Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz, Andrei Siclodi / Office Ukraine Innsbruck and Susanne Jäger / Office Ukraine Vienna presented the contents of the publication and discussed the various challenges in the context of the work of the Office Ukraine teams.

In the following panel discussion, Ukrainian artists talked about their living and working situation in Austria and, together with members of Office Ukraine, discussed suitable support measures for displaced cultural workers.

Participants: Anastasiya Yarovenko / artist and curator, Anastasiia Vasylchenko Mamay / artist, Mark Napadenski and Susanne Jäger / Office Ukraine Vienna.

After the official part, drinks were offered, and there was an opportunity for informal discussions.

We would like to thank Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz for supporting the event.

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Office Ukraine Book Presentation WAITING FOR... at Theater im Bahnhof, Graz, December 6, 2024

As part of the festival WAITING FOR..., organized by Office Ukraine Graz from December 3 to December 7, 2024, the Office Ukraine publication was presented on December 6 as part of a discussion moderated by Pia Hierzegger with ten guests who had worked with Office Ukraine Graz in the previous two years or had been supported by it.

Valeriia Lysenko, Olia Fedorova, and Nastia Khlestova / Ukrainian artists and curators from the visual art scene, were asked to address the parallel experiences of insecurity and empowerment.

Supporters and cooperation partners of Office Ukraine Graz, such as Heinz Wittenbrink / co-founder of off_gallery Graz, Nina Koren / journalist for the daily newspaper Kleine Zeitung and head of the Foreign Affairs & International department, Christiane Kada / art historian and representative of the Cultural Department of the Province of Styria, Nayari Castillo / co-founder of Reagenz – an Association for Artistic Experiments, and Illya Pavlov / graphic designer, artist, and co-founder of Grafprom studio, answered a wide range of questions on the topic of “waiting”.

The perspectives presented on stage were complemented by Stefanie Brunmayr / policy officer at the Department for European and International Cultural Policy at the Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sports, and Mark Napadenski / team member of Office Ukraine Vienna, who both have been involved in supporting Ukrainian artists as part of the Office Ukraine initiative.