Maria Vtorushina

Maria Vtorushina is a curator and artistic director from Kyiv. Her curatorial projects are based on analyzing notions, concepts and practices of freedom and her main field of research are the history of queer art and the fight for human rights in Ukraine. In her ongoing research, Maria aims to reveal and articulate voices and practices of queer people from Ukraine, censored or repressed by different government regimes starting from the beginning of the twentieth century.

About

Maria Vtorushina holds a Master’s degree in Art History from the National Academy of Arts and Architecture, Kyiv. Maria is a co-founder and curator of Set Foundation. The basis of Set exhibition activity is an anti-hierarchical collaboration between representatives of different ideas and schools in contemporary culture. Currently, Set is focused on providing direct financial support to artists affected by the Russian war and terror against Ukraine. You can donate or apply to this initiative here: setsupport.online

Since 2016, Maria has been leading Kyiv Art Week as its artistic director. The festival welcomes more than 30 000 visitors each year, Kyiv Art Week is a professional art festival that establishes connections and forges relationships between culture actors from Ukraine and all around the world.

Website Maria Vtorushina
Website Set Foundation
Website Kyiv Art week

Artists at Risk

This residency came into being in collaboration with the Finnish NGO Artists at Risk. They are working at the intersection of human rights and the arts. Since 2013 the organisation has endeavoured to assist artists and cultural labourers who are at risk politically and who are fleeing oppression and war globally. Artists at Risk has assisted numerous persecuted or imprisoned artists, including Pussy Riot members Maria Alyokhina and Nadya Tolokonnikova, the Vietnamese singer, artist, and political activist Mai Khoi, Egyptian poet Galal El-Behairy or Kurdish artists such as Barıs Seyitvan. Artists at Risk is dedicated to supporting persecuted art practitioners, facilitating their safe passage from their countries of origin, hosting them at Artists at Risk connected residences and curating related projects at the Artists at Risk Pavilion.