Collaboration with Nadiya Petrovska
Concrete, glass, plastic, acrylic, liquid.
Size: 12 x 13 x15 cm
I remember how, at the very beginning of the full-scale invasion, calls were spread everywhere to paint over road signs. For Russian soldiers using Soviet-era maps, this was meant to make navigation difficult. Almost two years have passed, but those painted-over signs still remind us of the first days of the war, and not just that. Many of us have been left without direction in our lives. In a world that has gone beyond our imaginary control, we seem to be driving off-road, not quite understanding where or why, whether we have chosen the right direction, how much farther to go, or if there is enough fuel to get there.
Everyone has their own path in life, but breaking through the mud, ice, or layers of emotional concrete, we all ultimately find our way back to ourselves. You can get there at any moment; the main thing is not to be afraid to turn off the asphalt road.
Series concept
The gift that no one would want to receive.
No one in their right mind would ever want this gift. Yet, fate and our nervous systems grant it to us, leaving us with no other choice. War is a profound trauma. While the conflict will eventually end, the triggers—certain objects, sounds, and places—will repeatedly pull us back into the raw feelings and states we once experienced. These memories settle at the bottom of our psyche like a heavy block of concrete, lying dormant as long as they are connected to intense negative emotions. We cannot move forward until we have reconsidered these events and understood how they have reshaped our personalities and values for the better. Only then can these memories be transformed into the foundational blocks of the person we are yet to become. Triggers cannot be escaped; they must be confronted and discharged so they are not inherited by our children.