Finissage & workshop – Traces of an apocalypse

To wrap up the exhibition ‘Traces of an Apocalypse’, we invite you to an open art workshop with curator Elena Pagel at the nEUROPA Gallery on 29 May at 7 pm.

Under the title “26 April 1986: Memories & Future”, we will create a shared space for artistic reflection and exchange. Together, we will create postcards and a poster featuring drawings, collages and texts: personal memories of the day of the disaster, perspectives gained by younger generations, or thoughts on the present – the proximity of war, the threat to the sarcophagus, the fragility of the region, and questions about the future and responsibility.

The resulting works will be collected as an “Archive of Voices” and sent to the Ukrainian artists.

All participants are invited to bring their own materials, such as old magazines, newspapers or prints, for use in the collages.

Traces of an apocalypse

A visual report from the first zone. Exhibition marking the 40th anniversary of Chornobyl

Stagnation, the past, danger. Forty years ago, the Chornobyl disaster changed the world. Today, the place is once again under threat: not only from radiation, but also from war. This exhibition presents photographic memories and voices of the ghosts from a place that once lived, fell silent and is now being shaken once again. But behind the ruins and the silence are also the faces of those who entered the zone back in 1986. Their work, their courage and their presence are part of a history that must not be forgotten.

Participating photographers and artists

Oleg Kutskiy (Odesa)
Photo series ‘Ghosts of Chornobyl’

Oleg Veklenko (Kharkiv)
Photographs and excerpts from the memoir ‘Chornobyl: Sketches from Life’

International Kharkiv Triennial ‘4th Block’/ Competition 2026 ‘Chornobyl 40’
Posters by Dmytro Miroshnichenko, Maria Sayenko, Milana Kochnova, Nadia Kiiko, Nataliia Kryvobok, Serafima Kabanets, Sergij Ianko, Sofia Katrich, Valeria Nikiforova

Curation

Elena Pagel and Iryna Guziy

Das Projekt wird gefördert durch das Staatsministerium für Soziales und Gesellschaftlichen Zusammenhalt. Diese Maßnahme wird mitfinanziert mit Steuermitteln auf Grundlage des vom Sächsischen Landtag beschlossenen Haushaltes im Rahmen des Förderprogramms »Wir für Sachsen«.