Sense of Safety: Art in a Time of War

Can art offer shelter? This project examines art's capacity to build infrastructures of care, solidarity, and communication under conditions of conflict.The art project Sense of Safety is set against the backdrop of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and the relentless bombardments of Kharkiv. It is centered on an exhibition at the Yermilov Centre, Kharkiv, that turned out to be one of the safest places in the city and occasionally serves as a shelter. The exhibition brings together over thirty Ukrainian and international artists. Using installations, participatory performances, and videos, they evoke rituals of everyday communalization, reorganize spaces, and foster communication to create a semblance of stability and safety. In this way, the initiators created an international network of participating artists and institutions far beyond the bunker. Exploring themes of safety from political, bodily, existential, social, and economic perspectives, Sense of Safety surveys the role of art in times of war--its capacity to build infrastructures of care and spaces of solidarity.