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The artistic practice of Anton Shebetko (1990) zooms in on the undocumented queer history of Ukraine, the country from which he emigrated to the Netherlands seven years ago. Shebetko conducts in-depth research into this forgotten past, intensively collaborating with LGBTQIA+ communities in his native country. The driving forces behind his art are not only the rehabilitation and celebration of queer identity, but also the act of critical reflecting on it. In photography, as well as in film and installations, he uncovers these hidden narratives.
At Prospects, Shebetko presents a selection from his new project Dear Sons and Daughters of Ukraine (2025). The artist partially covered large photographs of Soviet statues with wooden panels inspired by patterns from the paintings of the renowned artist Kazimir Malevich — who is often labelled as Russian but was, in fact, Ukrainian. What remains visible highlights the homoerotic elements of muscular Soviet heroes, some of whom still stand in public spaces. The photographs are accompanied by a miniature bronze sculpture of gay porn star Billy Herrington. In 2022, a petition to replace a statue of Catharine the Great in Odesa with a statue of Herrington was signed by over 25,000 people and prompted a reaction from President Zelensky. Shebetko wonders whether this preference for a gay meme character over a Russian monarch was an act of resistance, or driven by homophobic sentiments. Together, the elements of Shebetko’s installation at Prospects challenge the construction of national myths. But above all, by reinterpreting shared societal symbols through a queer lens, Shebetko offers an alternative history.
Text: Esmee Postma
Translated from Dutch by Marie Louise Schoondergang (The Art of Translation)