Revolutionary Experimental Space
R.E.P. Group was established in Kiev by young Ukrainian artists in 2004 as a reaction to the historical period of Orange Revolution. The Group is constituted by artists: Mykyta (Nikita) Kadan, Olesya Khomenko, Volodymyr Kuznetsov, Zhanna Kadyrova, Ksenia Gnylitska, Lada Nakonechna. What is characteristic to all R.E.P. activities is strong relation to the Ukrainian history, but also attempts to create a new national language for contemporary art in country with no cultural heritage. Just until recently the only attitude to Ukraine for most Ukrainian born artist was the name of some Ukrainian city in their documents in the blank for birthplace. As soon as their artistic careers leaded them to Moscow, they became Russian artists. Just to mention Archipenko, Malewicz, Tatlin, the biggest names of Russian avant-gard that are in fact of Ukrainian origins. Orange Revolution was a turning point for contemporary art in Ukraine. It was not only manifestation of their public commitment and political attitude, but also the first real manifestation of presence of such phenomenon as contemporary art in social and cultural context. It was an opportunity to negotiate conditions for its way of existing in new political reality. This is why REP chose public space as an area of their artistic experiments. On the other hand there are no alternatives because of poor conditions for contemporary art at all. No art galleries, no institutional background, no mechanisms for art support, no art critique. In 2005 R.E.P won a competition for representation of Ukraine in the national pavilion during the 51st Venice Biennial.However the new goverment in their cultural policy was trying to refer more to traditional Ukrainian values which in fact meant patriotic art with lots of references to folk aesthetic, than to progressive and modern language and forms of culture. That is why even though they won the competition, Minister of Culture decided to send more traditional art. As a reaction for that situation R.E.P. constituted a new artistic movement called „Patriotism”. „Patriotism“ was about to be universal art, accessible for all because of the usage of common and understood system of signs. All artists of that movement had to forget about their individuality and create new meanings in forms of combinations of strictly recorded signs – templates. The new language for art established by REP and the new artistic tendency called “Patriotism” is from one point of view an ironic commentary to the official cultural policy of the Ukrainian state, but on the other hand is a patriotic gesture and reflection on the ways of development and existence of contemporary art, its language, importance and its potential impact on social and political reality. The language of R.E.P. is modern and folk at the same time. It derives from avant-garde tradition, street-art or rather political activities of opposition, but also from complicated in structure paintings of ortodox churches and folk symbolism.
Magdalena Kownacka