Dzyga tops off anniversary with an exhibition of painting on glass (06/14/98)

Dzyga tops off anniversary with an exhibition of painting on glass

by Marko Andryczyk

LVIV - On the mythically ominous night of Friday the 13th, with a full moon illuminating the midnight blue March sky, the Art Cultural Center Dzyga (ACC Dzyga) kicked off a three-day celebration of its first anniversary.

The festivities centered around an exhibition of painting-on-glass, a largely forgotten art form dating back to the 17th century, indigenous to the Hutsul and Pokutia regions. These paintings, depicting saints in primitive representations of traditional poses, were created by village folk and were displayed in their homes in order to ward off evil spirits and to offer protection.

The exhibition displayed at Lviv's National Museum on this night was titled "Three Dimensions: Past, Present and Future" and featured paintings on glass by artists of centuries past, by contemporary artists and by children aged 4 to 12. The primary goal of this exhibition was to raise awareness about and rehabilitate this art form. Perhaps subconsciously the exhibit was staged to protect Dzyga's anniversary celebration from being spoiled by any evil spirits that roamed Lviv's narrow, cobblestone streets on this night.

The Art Association Dzyga was formed in 1993 by Markian Ivaschyshyn, Volodymyr Kaufman, Adrian Klisch, Yaroslav Ruschynskyi and Roksolana Ivaschyshyn.

Since that time, the organization steadily developed various projects in art, music and literature from its rented space on the second floor of the 16th century tower in which gunpowder was stored, known as Porokhova Vezha. As the scope of projects grew, the need for a larger space stimulated the organization to rent and reconstruct two floors of a four-story building at 35 Virmenska Street.

The building, built in the Gothic style, dates back to the 15th century and once served as a Dominican monastery. It now seals off one end of this ancient street.

After more than a year of remodeling, Dzyga officially opened the doors to its new Art Cultural Center in March 1997. On its first floor, the complex houses a 207 square-meter contemporary art gallery (exhibits rotate every three weeks), a 120-seat concert hall, a salon-shop, and a children's art studio. Upstairs one finds ACC Dzyga's administrative offices and a cat walk that overlooks the first floor.

In this perspective, ACC Dzyga has organized five projects (one international), 19 exhibitions, 21 concerts, 10 poetry readings, 14 music and literary presentations, 18 literary soirées, two theater experiments and one all-Ukrainian festival of metal-art.

Other events presented by ACC Dzyga during its anniversary celebration included a concert by the poetry/music project Vohni Velykoho Mista (which featured a collaboration between writer Yurii Pokalchuk and three prominent Lviv musicians), concerts by the groups Dyvni and Pikardiiska Tertsiia, a fashion show at the Lviv Opera Theater and the official formation of the Lviv Blacksmith's Association. An awards ceremony banquet offered various tasty treats many of which doubled as "food art" exhibitions before being devoured by ravenous guests.

On the third day of celebrations, Lviv artist Vlodko Kaufman presented a performance. His act of smashing and subsequently sweeping away the very same paintings on glass that he exhibited and created with artist Natalka Shymin a week earlier symbolized the historic destruction and disappearance of several Ukrainian art forms - among them painting on glass.

Lviv's cultural scene is full of interesting ideas, but the lengthy wish list of potential projects unfortunately remains just that - a wish list - that is never realized due to lack of organization, support and of course, money.

In this perspective, ACC Dzyga's considerable accomplishments of the last year, in addressing at least a portion of these ideas, is truly commendable and worthy of the party it threw for itself.