S&T RESIDENCY: Alex Fisher and Yevheniia Moliar, “Triangulating Shevchenko”, 19 August, 2023, 7:00 PM

“Triangulating Shevchenko” is a panel discussion between Alex Fisher and Yevheniia Moliar, both current residents at Slavs and Tatars.

The discussion considers distinct representations of the famous Ukrainian poet and national figure Taras Shevchenko, focusing on a painting by the Georgian visual artist Andro Wekua and monuments by Ivan Kavaleridze, a Soviet Ukrainian creative polymath.

The discussion will explore ‘triangulation’ as a method for reckoning with the poet’s legacy, and, by extension, that of cultural and national icons whose likenesses have been replicated in different artistic styles. The method calls for ‘locating’ a subject by determining its relation to multiple reference points with known positions.

Fisher will analyze Wekua’s painting named after a ship titled for Shevchenko and reflect on how it has assumed new meaning against the backdrop of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Moliar will address the expansive practice of Kavaleridze, who created monuments that combine Constructivist and Cubist elements in addition to directing films.

Free admission.

Alex Fisher is a writer and curator from Buffalo, New York, USA. His research focuses on legacy (re)formation and mutual associations of natural, built, and political environments.

Yevheniia Moliar is an art historian from Kyiv, Ukraine. Her research focuses on the cultural heritage of the Soviet period, with concentrations on monumental art and local lore museums.