This exhibition presents a selection of major works from the print collection of the Odesa Museum of Western and Eastern Art, whose extensive holdings are directly threatened by Russia’s war of aggression in the Ukraine. The museum for Western and Eastern art in Odesa was founded in 1923 and houses a versatile collection of historically significant cultural and artistic works. Major focus is on paintings, printed works, sculptures and applied arts from the Renaissance into the twentieth century. Due to its holdings, the museum is one of the most important museum institutions in Ukraine and the collection is part of the country’s cultural identity.
The Kunsthalle Bremen is supporting the efforts of the Odesa Museum to transfer its valuable works of art to secure locations and make them accessible to a wider public. Due to its own history, the Kunsthalle is aware of the challenges inherent in protecting and preventing the theft of works of art during wartime. This remains a painful chapter in the history of its own collection. Furthermore, the cooperation strengthens the close cultural relationship between Ukraine and Bremen which also exists within the scope of the 2023 town twinning between the two cities. This latest sister city partnership arose from a demonstration of solidarity following the attack by Russia on Ukraine in February 2022 and various previously existing cultural, civic societal, economic and religious contacts.
Forty European printed works have been selected to be displayed in the Department of Prints and Drawings at the Kunsthalle Bremen. These include prints by famous etchers, wood cutters and copperplate engravers such as Rembrandt van Rijn, Claude Mellan, Jacques Callot, Cornelis Cort, Johann Elias Ridinger, Jan Both, Adriaen van Ostade and Niccoló Boldrini.