Vernissage – Traces of an apocalypse

We cordially invite you to the vernissage of the exhibition ‘Traces of an Apocalypse’ on 27 February at 7 pm in the nEUROPA gallery

Book presentation: ‘Chornobyl: Sketches from Life’ by Oleg Veklenko (2017)

In 2017, Oleg Veklenko’s book ‘Chornobyl: Sketches from Life’ (in Ukrainian) was published, in which the author tells his life story. The book is available in Russian, English and German translations.

Oleg Veklenko, liquidator of the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster, artist, professor at the Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts, recalls his own feelings during the operation in Chornobyl in May/June 1986. The stark reality of the difficult everyday life is presented in vivid language, supplemented by drawings and photographs by the author.

For more than three decades, he has devoted his artistic and educational work to the themes of the environment, ecological responsibility and the consequences of technological disasters. He is co-founder and president of the International Eco-Poster and Graphic Triennial ‘The 4th Block’ in Kharkiv, which is an important forum for ecological graphics and visual communication.

Veklenko has participated in numerous national and international exhibitions, including in Russia, Poland, Finland, Slovakia, Canada, Great Britain, Denmark and the USA. His works have been honoured with numerous prizes and awards.

Film screening: ‘January 2026. Ukraine. Exclusion Zone. Maria.’ by Ruslan Gorovyi (2026)

Journalist and filmmaker Ruslan Gorovyi recently shot a short video in the Chornobyl exclusion zone about how people live there.

More specifically, it focuses on one woman: Maria. She is 86 years old and has lived in this place for 40 years.

The film shows how difficult it is to reach certain locations in the zone. And that people live there despite everything. In snowstorms. Sometimes they are cut off from the power supply and the possibility of making contact. Today, the rest of Ukraine is also being hit by snowstorms.

The film conveys a little human warmth in this gloomy situation around us.

Ruslan Horovyi is a Ukrainian journalist, documentary filmmaker and writer who is best known for his humanitarian and socially engaged projects. He has worked for the television station Magnolia TV for many years and is the author of the programme Children’s Search Service, for which he received the award ‘Honoured Journalist of Ukraine’. In his documentaries, he focuses on people in extreme situations, the consequences of war and disasters, and the stories of those who are otherwise rarely seen.

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«.

We want to put the nEUROPA gallery on a new basis – with a fresh new look, better equipment and a stronger team of volunteers! Our goal: €8,000 by 14 May 2026. Every contribution counts – big or small!