Poznań: CK Zamek, Święty Marcin 80-82 / Kharkiv: YermilovCentre, Svobody Square, 4
Concept and curatorial program
contributor
with the support of
Echoes of Shelters, a hybrid performative walk presented as part of Bridges of Solidarity - Sense of Safety, organised by DOMIE in Poznań and Yermilov Centre in Kharkiv, in collaboration with The International Coalition of Cultural Workers in Solidarity with Ukraine. This walk will take the form of a psychogeographical journey, connecting together cities, narratives, and communities, with participation both locally and in Kharkiv.
Echoes of Shelters walk proposes an investigation into urban spaces and collective experiences associated with notions of shelter and the creation of temporary places, situating these as temporary interventions in evolving contexts. The walk will integrate testimonies, case studies, and creative interpretations shaped by multigenerational and intercity experiences.
This psychogeographical exploration extends beyond a physical route, uncovering the layered topography of shelters within Poznań. The event provides a contemplative space to address the resilience of communities amid conflict and displacement, fostering a bridge of solidarity between historical and contemporary narratives of Ukraine and Poland. Through the lens of artistic perspectives, we will examine shelter as a sense of safety and space of care.
The program of the walk includes:
12:00 - Cultural Institution as Shelter / CK Zamek, Balcony hall, Poznan
A storytelling hybrid session: Natalia Ivanova, director of YermilovCentre, who will discuss the transformation of a cultural institution into a shelter at the onset of full-scale war in Ukraine in 2022.
Co-curator of the Sense of Safety exhibition Marina Konieva and ukrainian artist Olga Fedorova will share their personal stories related to safety.
12:45 - walk&talk
13:00 - Performance by "Nema" playback theatre at the YermilovCentre, Kharkiv
The concept of safety will be explored through a performance where actors will recreate your stories in an improvisational mode, revealing emotions and experiences through movement and language.
The team of "Nema" playback theatre consists of young people from different specialties and professional fields. Despite the difficult security and economic situation in the city, the theatre continues to experiment, searching for its own style and like-minded people. Each performance is a process of creating a safe space for sharing experiences and dialogue.
13:15 - "bodily cartographies" in the underground shelter, Poznan
A movement performance inspired by the history and contemporary meaning of underground spaces, exploring the relationship between architecture and corporeality.
Performers: Tamara Olga Briks (PL), Ada Metryka (PL), Mikita Lewkowicz (BY)
13:45 - Collective reading of Palestinian poetry / walk&talk, Poznan
A reading from If I Must Die, You Must Live to Tell My Story, a zine dedicated to Palestinian poetry, created by poets and amateurs, where translation becomes a form of activism.
Person hosting the reading: Julia Niedziejko
14:15 - A performative exploration of the air raid shelter / Air Raid Shelter in Wilson Park, Poznan
Storyteller: Wojciech Mania
15:00 - Concert of the Otucha collective at the Poznan Palm House Pavilion II, livestream at YermilovCentre, Kharkiv
In the Palm House we will hear, among others, songs from the Luhansk region, which Otucha learned from Vlada Rusina, Paulina Miu Kühling and Matthias Schönijahn, through a project inspired by a trip to the northeastern Luhansk region in 2021, "Who'd have thought that the snow falls."
Performers: Agnieszka Bułacik, Mina Đorđević, Magda Jaroszewicz, Kata Kwiatkowska, Agnieszka Kucharska, Julia Legezynska, Doro Michalak, Vlada Rusina, Liene Šilde, Vita Zelenska, Ola Zielinska.