Olaf Martens photo exhibition showcases women and nothing but women. Completely nude or wearing little but lingerie, they hop from catwalks to fashion studios putting little effort to look sexy and voluptuous. Once called the Helmut Newton of Eastern Germany, the photographer likes to say that his work balances between art and the so-called commercial kitsch. Yet you can’t help but wonder if his works are fine examples of strong irony or just a series of clichés, typical for our vague and materialistic age. In his defense though famous publications like Harpers Bazaar, Der Spiegel, Die Welt, Glamour, among many others did found his photographs worth publishing.
Brucie Collections, 55B Artema St. 353-1234, www.bruciecollections.com, until Jan. 24
Ukrainian scu
lptor Mykola Malyshko borrowed a few ideas from traditional African art to make a series of wooden sculptures. Spiritually, his work pays respect to the African sculpture tradition. Damaged by time or burned down by missioners in the 19th century, not much of it has survived to this day. Simple and sometimes rough sculptures by Malyshko reflect on tribal lifestyles in Africa.
Ya Gallery, 55/57 Voloska St., 537-3351, www.yagallery.com.ua, Jan. 18 – Feb. 14
Painter Volodymyr Budnikov is in the air with his new exhibition “Clouds.” Fascinated by the changing nature of the sky, he presents 10 oil paintings. He knows that he can’t catch the clouds’ transcendence in full and therefore, makes you think of fluidity as another form of reality.
Bottega gallery, 22B Mykhaylivska St., 279-5353, www.bottega-gallery.com, until Jan. 20 (closed Sundays and Mondays)
The M17 Contem
porary Art Center takes you on a stroll through Venice in the oil paintings by Victor Babentsov, Victor Ryzhikh and Ivan Pilipenko. The exhibition “Venice for Three” takes you on a journey beyond romantic channels and bridges. Covering almost 50 years of the Venetian history, the artists also pay tribute to the people of Venice.
M17 Contemporary Art Center, 102-104 Gorkogo St. (Antonovycha), 596-2030, www.m17.com.ua, until Jan. 23 (closed Mondays)
Avant-garde artist Mark Epstein was a prominent figure in the 1920s’ Kyiv. His graphics, sculptures, and sketches of costumes and decorations for a couple of theater plays have survived to this day. He has also worked as a book illustrator. The exhibition of “The Master’s Return” shows more than 100 works by Epstein and most of them for the first time ever.
National Art Museum of Ukraine, 6 Grushevskogo St., 278-13-57, 278-74-54, www.namu.kiev.ua, until Jan. 30
Lviv expres
sionist Mykhaylo Demtsyu thinks that everyone needs a “colorful ambulance” to get the spirits up in this grey reality. Traveling around the world, he figured that every country has its own color code. In Mystetska Zbirka, he presents the exhibition “London, New York, Monaco and Hutzul Ksenya,” in which the latter is a girl from a popular Ukrainian folk song. In Demtsyu’s work, Ksenya represents a regular Ukrainian during his travels abroad.
Mystetska Zbirka Gallery, 13 Tereschinkivska, (050) 856-0448, 234-1427, www.artzbirka.com, until Jan. 30
If you ever felt like shooting a work of art for whatever reason, you are not alone. Mykyta Kravtsov and Anton Logov painted war-torn, abstract scenes in order to show pain from shooting first. Then, they gunned down their work, filming the process along the way. Two more artists, Oleksandr Lyapin and Anna Voitenko contributed to this artsy violence with a series of digital pictures “To Kill Pokemon.” Pokemon is a Japanese cartoon and video game character extremely popular with children to the annoyance of many adults.
Ya Gallery on Khoryva, 49B Horyva St., 492-9203, www.yagallery.com.ua, Jan. 18 – Feb. 14 (closed Sundays)
Trace the evolution of
winter holidays and gifts in The Christmas Tale exhibition. It presents ornaments, old post cards, and magazines dating back to the 19th century. The items on display tell the story of Orthodox, Catholic and secular New Year’s celebrations through the years. There’re a poster advertising smokeless fireworks, which were a novelty of that time, an old-fashioned train and different statuettes of Father Frosts.
One Street Museum, metro Kontraktova Ploshcha, 2B Andriyivsky uzviz, 425-0398, www.onestreet.kiev.ua. Tickets: Hr 20, until Jan. 30.
A collection of hand-made dolls and Christmas decorations is on display in Parsuna gallery. Check out hand-made Christmas angels, Father Frost and a Snow Maiden, glittering trees, cuddly animals, ballet dancers, princesses and clowns. “Toys for the Prince” exhibition is what you need to warm the spirit and empty the wallet in time for the holidays. Some dolls and decorations are for sale.
Parsuna Gallery, 43 Horyva, 425-2415, (097) 494-0865, www.parsuna.com.ua, until Jan. 20
