Nikita Kadan ‘The Exhibit. Inseparable’

In his piece ‘The Exhibit. Inseparable’ Nikita Kadan reflects on how historical narratives are construed. In his opinion, complex and dynamic processes are reduced to a homogenous, inseparable mass, where any expression of individual experience becomes impossible.

Nikita Kadan (1982) studied monumental painting at the National Academy of Fine Art in Kiev, currently works in installation, graphic art, painting, drawing and poster art in urban environments, in his multidisciplinary projects he often collaborates with architects, human rights activists and sociologists. Since 2004 he has been a member of the collective activism group R.E.P. (revolutionary experimental place), in 2008 he was the co-founder of the artist-activist and curator group ‘HUDRADA’. Nikita Kadan actively comments on social issues, combining political activism with his creative practice. His attention is mainly focused on urban changes in Kiev, documenting the effect of historical events and its presence in the Ukrainian society. Nikita Kadan’s creative practice reflects on political memory and relationship between the narratives of modernity and the reality in capitalist society; examining current events through the prism of historical events and soviet experience, he attempts to visualise collective memories, the logic of forgetting and its internal mechanisms of development. In 2011 Kadan received the Pinchuk Art Centre award, in 2015 he was one of the main artists creating the Ukrainian Pavilion at the Venice Art Biennale.