The Chronicle
20 October 2018 • Nikita Kadan
The material used while working on 'The Chronicle' series included photographs showing victims of Lviv pogrom of the Jewish community, Polish and Ukrainian victims of the Volhynia massacre, victims of NKVD, and civilians and prisoners of war murdered under Nazi occupation.
The series is a reference to a multiannual phenomenon of photographic manipulation: photographs are distributed with captions altering the order of executioners and their victims. The history of manipulation is nothing but continuity in the history of crime, on a variety of levels and differently motivated. Later, manipulation is detected and all sides proceed with revealing mutual truths. The struggle for memory morphs into competition to generate an ideologised imitation of memory.
'The Chronicle' series reflects contemporary “memory wars”. Artist offers a suggestion that history should always be viewed directly – without exception – and never through the protective looking-glass of an ideologically founded mythology.
'The Chronicle' series reflects contemporary “memory wars”. Artist offers a suggestion that history should always be viewed directly – without exception – and never through the protective looking-glass of an ideologically founded mythology.
Series of drawings, 15X20 (20X15) cm each one, ink on paper, 2016
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Nikita Kadan is an artist who lives and works in Kyiv. He is a member of the R.E.P. group and curatorial group Hudrada.
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