Natural History of Destruction

The video installation »Natural History of Destruction« focuses on the experience of war that affects the dynamics of the body on a mental and a physical level. The visual base of this project consists of AI-generated images of bone structures interconnected with flowers, referencing the motif of ‘death and the maiden’. Anna Manankina’s art practice is strongly influenced by the vulnerability of humans and nature during the ongoing war in her home country. The artist analyzes how real life experience, digitization, and documentation of war can affect how one perceives one’s own corporeality.

Anna Manankina (*1995, Kharkiv, Ukraine) is an interdisciplinary media artist, working in the field of digital technologies with video, VR and AR installations, AI, and 3D animation with a focus on post-humanism and feminist practice.

In her artistic productions, she covers and addresses a wide range of issues: from geopolitical situations and power structures to intimate spheres of life, the themes of violence and gender identity, and the position of women in artistic and social contexts.

After Anna Manankina left Ukraine in spring 2022 because of the war, she was artist-in-residence at ZKM | Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe from April to December. Her works are exhibited internationally, including in Germany, France, Slovakia, Austria, Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania. As part of ZKM’s »Beyond Matter« project, she is currently participating in the exhibition »Immerse!« at Tallinn Art Hall, Tallinn, Estonia. Later this year, she will also take part in the upcoming Chengdu Biennale in China. Anna currently lives and works in Karlsruhe.