Winzavod.Gravity: the exhibition "What are you afraid of?"

Winzavod Center of contemporary art announces the launch of a new line of performance: Winzavod.Gravity and opens it with the exhibition "What are you afraid of?".

"The new direction of the Winery combines our actions of recent years into a single program. The exhibition and publishing programs together will present an up-to-date cross-section of art, help to unite, preserve and expand the space of artistic expression. Therefore, we chose the concept of gravity as the closest to our action — the unification of modern art and the creation of a field (place) for its attraction," said Sofia Trotsenko, founder of the CCA Winzavod.

The large-scale and frank exhibition "What are you afraid of?" will present the works of 28 artists and represent the theme of fear in art. Curator Elena Selina defines the title "What are you afraid of?" as a question and at the same time as a guide to action.

"In our particular case, the name can be deciphered as follows: act and perhaps your fear will simply disappear," comments Elena Selina, curator of the exhibition. – The exhibition is divided into two unequal groups, the first is the beginning of the exhibition and includes projects by artists who visualize their personal fears, but only present them, without any attempts to overcome them. The second one includes projects in which there is at least a potential attempt to overcome this fear."

The participants of the first exhibition, graduates of Winzavod's Open Studios, touch on the theme of anxiety as the basis of human-made changes and discoveries in many projects. The artists explore various fears that emerge from the depths of the subconscious, for example: fear of emptiness, fear of approaching people, fear of the unpredictable, fear of failure, fear of losing identity.

So, Katica reveals the fear of the unknown through knitting, combining handcraft and artificial intelligence in her work, Vasilisa Lebedeva talks about the fear of death by placing ceramic pigeons on sprouted grass, and Sayan Baigaliev, using the connection with traditional rituals, shares the fear of losing a close relative.

The exhibition explores the factor of intimacy between people and pushes the artist and the viewer to an open dialogue without masks. The principle of dialogue will become the basis of all the following issues: the task of exhibitions, including the first exhibition "What are you afraid of?" is to present and comprehend the actual portrait – emerging art – of contemporary Russian art.

Artists: Antipova Anastasia, Baigaliev Sayan, Bereketova Zhanar, Brandush Anna, Brovina Alina, Garkushko Katya, Golovkova Daria, Grankova Varvara, Goodwin Misha, Zhudro Lidia, Zhuravlev Alexey, Kapizova Diana, Katika, Kovaleva Anastasia, Komarova Anna, Kondratieva Anna, Koshlina Marina, Kuzma Zhenya, Lebedeva Vasilisa, Litvinova Anastasia, Nemova Julia, Neretina Daria, Nesterov Slava, Pirogov Danya, Plutitskaya Mika, Rubankov Mikhail, Stormy Lisa, Farangiz Ra.

Curator of the project: Elena Selina. Gallery owner and curator, founder and director of XL Gallery, one of Russia's leading contemporary art galleries. Curator of museum exhibitions by Boris Orlov, Viktor Pivovarov, Igor Makarevich and Elena Elagina, Vladislav Mamyshev-Monroe, etc. Curator of more than 300 exhibitions held at the XL Gallery, the Moscow Museum of Modern Art, the Ekaterina Cultural Foundation, the Manege Art Exhibition Center, the Worker and Collective Farmer Museum.

During the exhibition period, it is planned to hold a public program and release a catalog. The catalog will include documentation of the exhibition and research on a given topic: fears will be considered from the perspective of philosophy, folklore, film studies, medieval studies and art history.

Exhibition dates: May 22 – August 4, 2024.

Press screening: May 21.

Address: CSI Winery, White Workshop, Red Workshop. 4th Syromyatnichesky lane, 1/8, Kurskaya, Chkalovskaya metro stations.

(pictured: a prototype of the work of Lydia Judreau PLÉNISME)