Back in June I have been working in St. Petersburg for two weeks to participate in the exhibition Casus Pacis, a parallel event of Manifesta10.
I was working there with my palestinian friend Bilal, he helped me a lot and we had a great time there sharing with other artists and organizers. The exhibit was dedicated to a tragic anniversary, 100 years since the start of World War I, and to the revolution in Ukraine, inching towards a civil war. It is very sad to think that so long after the war drums still ringing in our ears. Nothing has changed. And in Ukraine, Syria, Gaza and many other places, war crimes are committed against civilians with impunity.
It was an emotional moment to see so many Russian and Ukrainian artists working together.
Thanks to all the people in the organization: Polina, Luba, Mikhail, Anna, Timur etc. Especially Bilal for his help and friendship.
Freedom of thought. St Petersburgh, Russia
Fyodors, St Petersburgh, Russia
The exhibit is dedicated to a tragic anniversary, 100 years since the start of World War I, and to the revolution in Ukraine, inching towards a civil war before our very eyes. A century ago, war redrew the map of Europe. Today, the political map of the world is changing dramatically once again. As great empires collapsed in the early twentieth century, they gave way to new independent nation-states, fuelling a multitude of conflicts that are still playing out today. The period from 1914 to 1918 marks a blank page in the creative biographies of many great artists of that period, as they traded their brushes for rifles and fought across Europe. A hundred years later, history has completed an almost mystical circle. The new generation finds itself back at the starting point of political tensions. In 2014, artists are yet to be drafted into the military, but none of us can escape the information war.
The new Street Art Museum, located inside a working factory in the Okhta district, unveils its inaugural exhibit entitled ‘Casus Pacis’ (Motive for Peace), which brings together approximately 60 young artists from Russia, Ukraine, and other countries.
