Veronika Hapchenko

Veronika Hapchenko’s practice embraces painting and object-making. It traces legends and taboos surrounding revolutionary artists and political gurus to deconstruct and rethink the cultural tropes of the former USSR, which oscillated between esotericism and militarism. Works from the Cosmic series are currently on view at the Museum of Art in Łódź as part of the exhibition Citizens of the Cosmos: Anton Vidokle with Veronika Hapchenko, Fedir Tetyanich and the Collection of the International Cosmist Institute. Most recently, Hapchenko began researching 1960s and 1970s modernist mosaics and murals from the territories of Ukraine and other former USSR republics. While many invoked a bright, peaceful future for the union, they are now being destroyed during the Russian invasion and bombardment of Ukrainian cultural heritage sites. The series was commenced by Shelter (2022) – a large-scale painting triptych interpreting Alla Horska’s mosaic Windfighter from the “Ukraina” restaurant in Mariupol. It was presented during the 8th Congress of Women at K1 Kanal Pompidou in Brussels in December and then as part of the 6th Dhaka Art Summit in Bangladesh.

Veronika Hapchenko, devil that steals the time (czort który kradnie czas), 2022
acrylic and ink on canvas, 150 x 130 cm, courtesy of the artist and Import Export, Warsaw;