Theory of Protection

(c) Mihaela Vezentan

March 24th. Today has been a month from the beginning of Russia’s war against Ukraine. One of the few ways that people who remain in their homes can protect themselves against the blast of explosions is to cover their windows with adhesive tape.

In solidarity with the people of Ukraine, using the universal language of art, the windows of the Polish Institute in Berlin and Bucharest, as well as the windows of the French Institute in Bucharest, have been covered with adhesive tape, in the intricate models inspired from Ukrainian artist Darya Koltsova’s installation “Theory of Protection”, created in 2013.

In 2017, the project was shown in Warsaw, Poland, as part of the exhibition State of Danger (Pracownia Duży Pokój). Curator Ewa Sulek, had stated in the text of the exhibition:

“The state of danger is the moment when nothing is happening yet. It is a moment of uncertainty and observation, a moment of vigilance and suspension, a moment of little stabilization. (…) Conflicts also have a second face – quiet and every day, full of small changes, new practices aimed at adapting to the changed realities of life.”

The installation was shown at Galeria Suprainfinit