Anatoly Osmolovsky - group show "...Hurrah! Sculpture!"

This exhibit questions the role of a contemporary sculptor in forming urban spaces. It critically assesses how monuments are being used in the new political mainstream. The project is a revision of what currently happens in the artistic realm of sculpture. It is also a demonstration of various forms of sculpture that compare different artistic strategies, allowing artists to have a clear understanding of their own art and place in the artistic process.The organisers thus pose a question: “Is contemporary sculpture possible within the framework of contemporary Russian art?”. Young artist will be presented at the exhibition together with well-known ones. The artists use different materials to make their works: from bronze to paper. While making a sculpture is usually an expensive process, young artists find cheap materials, demonstrating how making these works can be accessible.

Anatoly Osmolovsky, the curator, notes that monumental art has become a subject of public debates in Moscow and other Russian cities. “Monuments are being installed that are meant to form national identity from above in tune with the mainstream conservative cultural policy of the state. Memory in this monuments turns into an uncontested sequence of historical events. The politically ‘right’ version of the past is being asserted without any space for criticism.” Within these new conditions, we can understand the new role of sculpture in cities. Contemporary artists can point to the history that has been purged from the public mind and also demonstrate alternative models of interaction with public spaces. Thomas Hirschhorn called this process “monuments from below, emphasising the social relations that emerge around the monument without the help of the mainstream cultural force.