We are both freedom fighters': Africa exhibition at war-damaged Kyiv gallery strikes a chord

"On a quiet street in central Kyiv, where monuments are wrapped in sandbags and shrapnel shields, the Khanenko Museum has opened an exhibition about Africa. Its title, Africa Direct, is a statement and a method: a call to approach the continent not through inherited filters (Soviet, colonial, or western) but through direct engagement with its histories, philosophies and living cultures."

"The museum, which holds one of the most distinguished private collections of the 19th century in eastern Europe, was badly damaged when a Russian missile struck nearby in October 2022. Windows and show cases were shattered and the glass ceiling collapsed. Yet the museum's collections were unharmed: Byzantine icons, Islamic artwork, and old master paintings had already been secured, some of them safely evacuated to partner institutions in Paris, Vilnius, Warsaw and The Hague."

"The museum did not close. Its staff kept the institution open, empty but active, organising lectures, readings, and mental health workshops with the neighbouring hospital. Some of the glass fragments were later turned into brooches by a local goldsmith, offered as a sign of endurance to guests and friends. The curator has chosen to resist the usual distance imposed by glass, placing the works on simple wooden boxes."

The Khanenko Museum in central Kyiv reopened with an exhibition titled Africa Direct amid war-damaged surroundings where monuments are sandbagged and shrapnel-shielded. The museum holds a distinguished private 19th-century collection in eastern Europe and was badly damaged by a nearby Russian missile strike in October 2022, which shattered windows and collapsed a glass ceiling. Collections were unharmed after being secured and partly evacuated to partner institutions in Paris, Vilnius, Warsaw and The Hague. Staff kept the institution active with lectures, readings and mental-health workshops, and glass fragments were repurposed as brooches. The exhibition, curated by Yulia Fil and Daria Sukhostavets and initiated by deputy director Hanna Rudyk, brings 40 works from 18 African countries collected over two decades by a Ukrainian couple working in African public health, and pairs historical artefacts with contemporary artists including Adelaide Damoah, Christian Nyampeta, Seyni Awa Camara and Esther Mahlangu.

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