FOR Ukrainian Olha Bekenshtein, it is important to show her country is much more than a war zone.
It’s why she is co-curating a forthcoming festival in Glasgow that will showcase both Ukrainian and Scottish musicians and artists.
“Now in those crazy circumstances that people are living daily, artists are still creating and festivals are still happening in Ukraine,” she told the Sunday National.
“The purpose of this festival is not only to show how Ukraine is suffering because Ukraine is also progressing.
“It was and still is progressing in culture and for me as co-curator, it is very important to show progressive Ukrainian culture that for such a long time was overlooked.
“I want to build this knowledge about Ukraine beyond the talk of the war. It is a true solidarity when you are interested in someone’s culture as it gives a deeper understanding.”
Taking place next month, Time Based: Sonic Interventions is a festival of experimental music, sound art and cross-cultural collaborations between Ukrainian and UK artists, weaving together the rich cultural heritage of both nations.
“A talks and public engagement programme will further encourage audiences to reflect, connect and demonstrate solidarity in the face of aggression and to engage with the beauty and danger of sounds beyond our control,” said Bekenshtein, who has been based in Berlin since the war broke out but whose parents are still in Ukraine.
“They are in a relatively safe part of the country but my grandparents are in the occupied territory,” she said. “My other grandparents were also there and when they fell ill, we were unable to see them before they died.”
Bekenshtein is not hopeful about the outcome of current so-called peace talks.
“There’s lots of talking but everyone in Ukraine understands that it is impossible to negotiate peace with Russia only on terms that we either give up our territory or we postpone another attack for one or two years,” she said.
“It is impossible to stop the war in the terms that US president Donald Trump wants but if Ukraine loses it will be another bigger war.”
One of the artists commissioned for the new festival is Scot Genevieve Murphy who was due to visit Ukraine but was prevented by the Russian invasion.
Now three years later, Bekenshtein is “excited” they are finally able to work together but says she is also a “huge fan” of Scots Raymond MacDonald, Zoë Irvine and the Ukrainian artists involved – Anna Khvyl, Piotr Armianovski, Alla Zahaikevych, alice haspyd and Yuriy Seredin.
The festival concept was conceived by Bekenshtein as part of her Time Based platform which is dedicated to advancing contemporary performance arts in Ukraine and providing international opportunities for live and electronic sound creators, as well as experimental performance artists.
The festival will expand on this vision and is curated and produced in partnership with Arts & Parts, led by Martel Ollerenshaw.
Bekenshtein visited Glasgow recently for the first time to look at the venues and immediately took to the city and its people.
“It’s such a beautiful city and I know this sounds clichéd but I am a huge fan of the people because they are warm and have humour,” she said.
One of the venues is Glasgow Women’s Library which Bekenshtein said she immediately fell in love with.
“It’s an amazing place and such a nice venue,” she said.
As well as five new commissions to be presented in indoor venues and outdoor locations, the festival will incorporate a range of talks and activities that explore the theme of sonic intervention. Drawing from the air raid alarms that have become a stark reality in Ukraine, talks will investigate the dual nature of sounds as both poetic and dangerous.
Bekenshtein will lead a listening session called Some Sounds May Be Triggering, illustrated by examples of sound practices and musical works that have emerged during the Russian war in Ukraine. It will introduce recordings shaped by displacement, loss, urgency and survival – but also moments of radical care, love and aesthetic response.
The festival will run in Glasgow from June 11-15 at venues including the David Dale Gallery, Civic House and Glasgow Women’s Library and there will also be a guided sonic walk through the city.
Visit www.artsandparts.co.uk/sonic-interventions for more information
