Soft pink matter

Artist Nina Laguta
Curator: Anastasia Garazd

Nina Laguta’s solo exhibition “Soft pink matter” at thesteinstudio focuses on the artist’s personal reflections on existence in a body that is socially defined as feminine.

The exhibition is based on the idea of a living and vulnerable body that can be observed from the inside. The artist explores the body as a field of self-knowledge and as an object of external, socio-cultural gaze.

Using textiles, sculpture and installation, the artist examines a corporeality that refuses to be fully human, understandable or controlled. It becomes hybrid and capable of combining the incompatible, being permeable, aggressive, controlled and at the same time autonomous.

Nina Laguta (born 1994, Nova Kakhovka) is a multidisciplinary artist who mainly works with ceramics and textiles. In her works, she explores how trauma unfolds through the physical and mental body, thus revealing the fragility of human existence. The main themes of her practice are the exploration of the sensual side of life and the archaeology of memory. She lives and works in Kyiv.

Jan Dzheyran

Artist Diana Khalilova
Project curator: Valeria Nasedkina

The exhibition-dating “Jan Dzheyran” at thesteinstudio explores family memory and self-identification at the intersection of cultural and political contexts.

The author of the project, Diana Khalilova, was born in the North Caucasus, but as a child, due to the historical shifts of the 20th century, she found herself with her family in the Dnieper. Her family belongs to the Rutul people, one of the small ethnic groups whose representatives are scattered throughout the territories of the post-Soviet space. The 2001 Ukrainian census recorded only 139 Rutuls, mainly in Donetsk, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk regions and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

The title of the exhibition “Jan Dzheyran” comes from the affectionate address that her mother used to call the artist in her childhood. “Dzheyran” is a type of gazelle found in the Caucasus and some regions of Asia. This series tells about forgetting the mother tongue and inventing ways to remember it, about endangered species and their introduction, about beautiful beliefs that are overshadowed by an ugly reality.

“Jan Dzheyran” is an attempt to collect and preserve what is still left: words, images, gestures, memories. It is a tribute to parents who taught us to cherish the memory of our native land in their own special ways. All the works in the exhibition were made in collaboration with other family members – mother, father, younger brother.

Examining an ant's burrow before the rain

Artists: Marko Zaliznyak, Yana Kononova, Mykhailo Koptiev, Yarema Malashchuk and Roman Himey, Oleksiy Minko

Curators: Oleksandra Pogrebnyak and Dmytro Chepurnyi

The exhibition “Considering an Ant’s Nest Before the Rain” is dedicated to the relationship between modernization and processes of homelessness, highlighting how large-scale engineering and geopolitical projects transform not only space but also the very possibility of subjectivity.

In the summer of 2021, the Pokrovsky Historical Museum [the museum building was demolished in the winter of 2025] opened an exhibition of the same name dedicated to working with archives. It included photographs by Pokrovsky’s genius loci, photographer Mark Zaliznyak. In the early 1930s, he participated in expeditions to the Dnieper rapids under the leadership of Dmitry Yavornytsky, whose goal was to preserve the memory of the landscape before it was flooded due to the construction of a hydroelectric power station. Today, we turn to this exhibition again, but not to reproduce it. Rather, we seek to reinterpret it in the context of our contemporary experience, where changed conditions and new realities place the subject once again in the position of an ant before the rain. How can we rediscover or affirm individual freedom and subjectivity in the face of potential catastrophe?

Exhibition presentation after a month-long solo residency Olga Marusyn

Olga Marusyn is a Ukrainian artist and performer. Her focus is on themes of personal mythology, memory, copying, and repetition. The artist is interested in the temporal and relational dimensions of art, especially the politics of the process of producing an artwork. Marusyn uses a range of media, including text, video, choreography, graphics, and installation. She is a member of the performance group Abstract Finger (Pointing to Nothing) and The Musical Collective.

During her residency at thesteinstudio, Olga will work with a fantasy about an artist’s studio and continue her experiments with materials. Among them is raw material – salt water, which the artist extracts near her hometown of Lanchyn, Ivano-Frankivsk region.

A few kilos of exhibitions

Artist: Stanislav Turina
Curator: Kateryna Yakovlenko

An exhibition by artist Stanislav Turina, which includes a moving or changing exhibition. The presented works touch on the themes of memory, the value of art - both in times of war and in societies that find themselves on the periphery. Actually, this exhibition is about the periphery: attention, things, knowledge, experiences, people. Each of the presented works and series at the exhibition is simultaneously connected and not connected to each other.

"In this exhibition, attention and presence become important; and things that had nothing to do with everyday wartime life are burdened with anxiety and a sense of inevitability. Here is a person next to you - and he is gone. People die both from war and not from war. This is the only list that is replenished with names and is stored in a desk drawer that is not locked. But despite this, not everyone has access to it. The memory of time, of cities, and of people who were here and are still present is what remains in us," - from the curatorial text by Kateryna Yakovlenko.

Stanislav Turina is a songwriter, inclusion researcher, artist, and volunteer. He is interested in disability issues, the history of psychiatry, mountains, world cuisine, the relationships between different languages, rehabilitation, and human rights.

Turina was born in 1988 in the city of Makiivka, Donetsk region. Due to health reasons, he was forced to leave Donetsk region in 1993; he grew up in Transcarpathia in the city of Mukachevo. He studied at the Lviv Academy of Arts, Faculty of Art Glass. He participated in the projects of Galeria Detenpula, Galeria Jefremowa 26. He was a member of the Open Group. Turina is a co-founder and co-curator of the project ateliernormalno for artists for artists with and without Down syndrome. He lives and works in Kyiv.

*Several changes of expositions are planned within the framework of the exhibition

Chips: Ukrainian Naïve Mosaics

Yevgen Nikiforov

Opening of the exhibition showcasing part of the photo archive of Ukrainian mosaics collected by photographer Yevgen Nikiforov between 2013 and 2023, and published in the book Chips: Ukrainian Naïve Mosaics, 1950-90, co-authored with art historian Polina Baytsim

The exhibition expands the collection of the photo book of the same name, addressing mosaics found in passing, but centered deliberately - in the case of another discoverer, they would have remained at the "bottom of the pack".

The exhibition focuses on the practices of archiving practices, which also change, layering: the impossibility of restoring the names of the mosaic authors transforms into a record of their work, and the destruction of Ukrainian spaces transforms into a photographic record of love and attachment to them.
The exhibition will run from November 7 to 19.

The exhibition project is organized by
ist publishing in cooperation with the
Goethe-Institut in Ukraine.

C.D. - chechushka dasha

C.D - chorna dira (black hole in English)

in the meeting with a c.d“chorna dira” o b.h. (black hole in English) - (UNFINISHED: under development) a plaster frame-by-frame animation, a story about how the street started to get sick with black holes. people in the meeting with them - irreversibly changed (mutated/ got sick);

and one of the most dangerous effects of coexistence with a hole nearby was the disappearance of people (which was happening more and more often)

- encounters with the unknown/unclear/unspoken/unphrased/emptiness that needs to be filled

-about the disappeared, taken away, those who did not return, those who are escaping, "vanished" (as Marharyta Polovinko says), "beaten people" (as Dana Kavelina says)

-a story that emerged after (and about) forced mobilisation, about "fortune's mistress, who bends down from her kiss on the lips" (as Ilya Todurkin said)

in the meeting with c.d (chechushka dasha) - creation of a situation (residence): a workshop at thesteinstudio, where the work in the meeting with b.d. (black hole) began, which is presented in the "workinprogress" stage: with notes, storyboards, personal belongings of the artist, other works of artists, notebooks-diaries. Each day, a slab of the last frame was left, gradually filling the floor of the room, the places where "someone once was", eventually forming an installation - "memorial slabs to no one" (from the concrete poetri series).

"It would be better if it didn't happen"

Katya Liebkind

Katya Libkind's project "It Would Be Better If It Hadn't Been Like This" at thesteinstudio is the artist's first solo exhibition in Ukraine. It will present all of Libkind's works from her artistic practice that have been found - paintings, graphics, ceramics, audio with dreams, parts left over from installations, attempts to create clothing and accessories, video works on a projector, photo-video archives and recreated land art. Fragments of projects that, for one reason or another, did not happen will also be presented.

In her practice, the artist turns to deep introspection and contemplation of her own environment. Her works are based on radical sincerity and direct emotional experience. Libkind raises questions about personal and generally accepted boundaries and views, normality and beauty. The works are often based on or inspired by contradictions and doubts, and a separate source of search for the author is the space of dreams.

All the exhibits presented at the exhibition are inextricably linked to each other. One of the exhibits is a list of artists, curators, and curators who influenced the author’s work, or a fountain of the artist’s own blood. Liebkind says that the exhibition is “a mass of bodies with a literal circulatory system” and that “it couldn’t be better.”

Katya Liebkind is a Ukrainian artist, co-founder and member of ateliernormalno, a workshop for artists with and without Down syndrome. She was a member of the group “Montage” and the curatorial team of the cultural platform “Plivka”. She created scenography for musical performances and speeches with the “Ukho” agency. Her main media are graphics, installation, and video.

«I love you»
solo show Katy lesiv

One day I bought an unbloomed white peony from an older woman at the market. As it blossomed, it became remarkably showy and beautiful. Then, on May 24th, I bought another unbloomed peony from the same woman and put them in two glasses of water side by side. The first one kept unfurling its petals with each passing hour, while the second had just begun unfolding its petals. The next day, they were equally showy and beautiful. Two days later, the first peony withered while the second remained showy and beautiful.

– Katya Lesiv

I love you, a photographic project by artist Katya Lesiv, is about stages of maturity and about appreciating their natural manifestations. It serves as a documentary account, illustrating how the rhythms of life overlap for two particular peonies. By exploring the cyclical nature of every living being, death emerges as an inevitable and uncontrollable aspect. Through examining the completion of this cycle, it became evident to Lesiv that none of the different stages of life have ever been under human control.
The original medium of I love you is an art book published in 2020, a collaboration with IST Publishing in Ukraine. The book allows the project to find intimate contact with individuals, finding its place in every unique space where it is situated. For the first time, I love you is presented as an exhibition in Hippolyte Studio with black and white photographic works and text. The documentation of peony flowering is complemented by an imaginary dialogue between two fictional characters.

"There's no more mail. A car comes once a week."

Curator Milena Khomchenko
Artist Lada Verbina

Artist Lada Verbina's solo exhibition "The Post Office is Gone. A Car Comes Once a Week" at thesteinstudio gallery tells the story of belonging to a place, especially relevant during a full-scale invasion. The exhibition will include paintings, videos, and created objects that tell the story of organic disappearance, which occurs in parallel with the deliberate destruction of our land, our history, and our future by the Russian occupiers.

The leading theme of Lada Verbina's practice is memory, recollections, and archiving the past; the artist often works with food, in particular the image of bread. Thus, the main characters of the exhibition become walnuts — a central element of local traditions and rituals, buttery rolls, earthen relief, and even coins from a swan piggy bank.

"The Post Office is Gone. “A car comes once a week” is a phrase that belongs to the residents of the village of Stara Huta, in the Khmelnytskyi region, where the artist’s grandmother lived. The artist watched as the village gradually disappeared – important infrastructure facilities were closed, young people left, and older people died. But nature leaves nothing empty and other objects are beginning to fill the space, and the cyclical nature of natural processes gives hope for revival.

“Feelings before Christmas of the 2nd year of the full-scale invasion”

curator Asy Melnik
Artists: Bogdan Bunchak, Alisa Gaspid, Leon Seidel, Elsa Gubanova, Anastasiia Leliuk, Clemens Poole, Olga Stein

"Interaction" was an exhibition featuring six audio works and a collaborative object to which visitors were invited to contribute as co-authors.

This unique exhibition deliberately avoided a curatorial text or traditional explanation, opting instead to offer instructions for coexistence with the artworks. One crucial aspect to note:

- Each audio work was carefully selected to evoke contemplation, hope, and anticipation for the future, particularly during the holiday season. Visitors were encouraged to be mindful of their feelings, memories, and thoughts—or lack thereof—as they listened. Their reactions were considered legitimate contributions to the experience.

-At the center of the space lay a wooden object filled with sand. This collaborative work served as an invitation for collective participation. Visitors had the opportunity to place small objects in the sand, becoming part of the exhibition. To add the object to the exhibition, it was necessary to raise donations for the needs of the Ukrainian army .The sense of community, the spirit of collaboration, and the act of donation were central themes explored through co-creation.

"Interaction" provided visitors with a unique opportunity to engage with art in a participatory and immersive manner, fostering a sense of community and shared authorship

Гостинець\ Gostynets
curator: Tamara Turlyun

Artist: Katya Lesiv, Kateryna Aliynyk, Lada Verbina, Yevhen Korshunov, Olga Stein, Inga Levi, Diana Khalilova, Tamara Turlyun.

The Gostynets project delves into the theme of food as a form of memory, exploring its role and significance in human life. Against the backdrop of a full-scale invasion, each stage of food consumption, from cultivation to consumption, takes on added layers of meaning. The exhibition brings together diverse narratives from Ukrainian artists, all interconnected by the tradition of cooking and eating.

In Ukraine, nearly every family has experienced generational trauma stemming from events like the Holodomor, wars, and Soviet repression. Yet, Ukraine remains known as the "breadbasket of the world," continuing to supply grain even amidst hostilities. The significance and rituals surrounding food have evolved in response to these historical events.

"I witness the changes in my family's personal history and observe them mirrored in the lives of others. The landscape, particularly the ruined mounds of the Cherkasy region where I hail from, undergoes a transformation with each passing year, yielding a new harvest. Rural life, intimately tied to the land, unfolds in a cyclical pattern: harvesting, consumption, the passing of guardians, visits to graves, and the cycle begins anew," shares Tamara Turliun, the project's curator, reflecting on her personal connection to the exhibition.

Дні Дні DAY DAY

The "Days, Days" exhibition explores the essence of everyday life and the rituals that become indispensable during turbulent times. In a world where we often measure life by the passing days, this exhibition delves into the deeper questions: What constitutes our daily existence? What memories and experiences do we carry from one day to the next? How do we perceive the present moment, and what echoes of the past shape our "today"?

"Days, Days" represents a collective endeavor, featuring a diverse array of artistic voices unified in their exploration of time. Ukrainian artists come together to bridge the gap between past, present, and future, inviting viewers to contemplate the fleeting nature of time and the unfolding of each passing day.

The exhibition showcases works by esteemed Ukrainian artists including Tiberiy Silvashi, Lyusya Ivanova, Pavlo Kovach Jr, Daria Kuzmych, Lada Nakonechna, Dobrynya Ivanov, Yaroslav Futimsky, Oleksandr Yeltsyn, Asya Krasilnikova, Yevhen Holubentsev, Arkadiy Shtypel, Bohdana Davydiuk, Oleksandr Surovtsov, Iryna Holoborodko, Mariana Klochko, Ruslan Tremba, Vira Minailova, Understructures, Kostiantyn Smolianinov, Vasyl Dymyd, and Liza Biletska.

Venue: St. Sophia of Kyiv, Breadbasket
Date: 3 June - 3 July 2023
Curated by: Stanislav Turina
Supported by ZP Law office of Zoriana Pelekh

thesteinstudio

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us: ❶ artist-run ❷ Exhibitions ❸ Artists ❹ Residence ❺ podcast ❻open call
❼ Publications ❽ collaboration performance art program