The Ukrainian media artists Oleksandr Sirous and Dmytro Tentiuk, ZKM scholarship holders and members of Studio PHOTINUS, will present their art and discuss how their work has been changed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

Moderation: Philipp Ziegler

In their presentation Oleksandr Sirous and Dmytro Tentiuk will give an overview of the emergence and development of media art in Ukraine since the late 1990s. In particular, they will present the central role of PHOTINUS, which was founded in 2012 by the artists and musicians Max Robotov, Liera Polianskova, Ivan Svitlychnyi and Georgiy Potopalskiy and – by expanding into a school serving as a workshop for experiments with digital instruments (sound, video, programming, etc.) – has gradually evolved into an artistic community of artists, programmers, and engineers united by an interest in art and new media.

As part of the presentation, Oleksandr Sirous will perform his performance »RETERRITORIALIZATION« (2023) and present a documentation on a collective performance, which took place as part of _mediaklub in New York City last year.

PHOTINUS Studio is an artist group for media art based in Kiev, Ukraine. Until the beginning of the extensive war in Ukraine through Russia, the studio produced installations and artworks for international museums, biennials and festivals. Since February of 2022, the studio’s members have become defenders, fighters and volunteers. Some members went abroad to continue their artistic work and form alliances in support of their homeland.