The second event within the framework of the Weaving project is the presentation of the zine (not) real work by the Kyiv art collective Variable name at Berliner Straße space in Lviv.
Berliner Straße is a studio, community, and platform for the artistic production of analog photography and self-publishing in downtown Lviv. The studio was established in Odesa as a private workshop and photo lab but quickly grew into a public space and gallery of contemporary art. In October 2022, the space moved to Lviv, sticking to its main goal of promoting film photography by giving artists access to a professional photo lab and developing a collecting culture, as well as art production of analog photography in Ukraine.
About the (not) real work zine:
“As artists and curators, we tend to find ourselves in a situation where instead of payment, we are offered ‘expansion of social capital’ or ‘a chance to showcase our work’. So, at a certain point, the problematization of the economic and social status art workers in Ukraine became a constant topic for consideration, and we want to expand the circle of the participants of this discussion. The zine (not) real job includes professional experiences, as well as personal stories and analytical materials about the precarious work of Ukrainian cultural workers.The material’s format is at the intersection of documentary literature and visual art.
The first edition of the zine about artistic work was published at the end of 2021. Back then, we aimed at making a cross-section of the experiences faced by cultural workers. The offline public presentation was planned for the beginning of 2022. However, due to the russian invasion of Ukraine, the plans had to be canceled, and some people did not collect their books from the post office due to evacuation. During the year, in different cities and countries, we sometimes saw how our colleagues and friends transported their small libraries to the evacuation, and some of them brought (not) real job. We feel it’s high time to continue this discussion becauseeveryone is now paving their own path and gaining experience in making a living and continuing artistic practice between countries simultaneously. So we are glad to have the chance to meet up and talk about how our lives and strategies of artistic survival have changed during this year.”
Funded by the Stabilisation Fund for Culture and Education 2022 of the German Federal Foreign Office and the Goethe-Institut.