No Nostalgia

In Belarus you can find not just the beginnings of a civil society, but also a completely different artistic scene. After Alexander Lukashenko, the country's leader for the last 26 years, won against opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya in what many suspect was a rigged election, some of the world's attention was drawn to this country that so rarely makes the news. Mass protests (and retaliatory police violence) followed across the country.

 "Before August 9, there was practically no protest art in Belarus. On August 10, the artistic scene in the country exploded," says Nadzeya Makeyeva, editor of Chrysalis Magazine, a publication entirely devoted to contemporary Belarusian art.

Nadzeya Makeyeva, editor at Chrysalis Magazine

"Before there were some artists who, despite unofficial warnings to stay away from political actions, made projects about topics important to them. But in the end, something always got in their way – for example, their works were removed from exhibitions, not represented in catalogs, not nominated for awards. Also, our media does not like to deal with politically engaged art if it seems radical. If street art with political themes appears somewhere, it is instantly destroyed."

She finds this sudden change unprecedented. "For a country where any portrayal of Lukashenko makes people anxious and people are afraid of literally everything, all this is incredible. We started an archive to collect what different artists do. All the emotions they go through become evident: pain, disgust, anger, but also love and compassion for those who have suffered from the regime."

How are artists who live abroad engaging with the protests

"I'm not sure my assessments can be objective, because I've been living in different places for the last fifteen years," says visual artist Sasha Kulak, who sometimes introduces herself using the pseudonym DIVIDI. She has worked mainly in Moscow for the past six years, has spent long periods in Georgia, and has traveled extensively throughout Western Europe and Asia. "But after spending a month back in Minsk, I felt and saw so many things – everything around me shows that a new era of modern Belarusian self-consciousness is beginning. I don't see any nostalgia for the past."

Rufina Bazlova

The political situation has also been a catalyst for Rufina Bazlova, who has lived in Prague for the last twelve years. Her work uses embroidery in red and white, the colors of the authentic flag of Belarus, which dates back to 1918. At the time, the country was only independent for a year before it became part of the Soviet Union. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the country's independence was re-declared using the red and white flag, but in 1995 Lukashenko's government restored the regional Soviet flag, which is green and red. The current protests often use the "real" flag of the country as a form of resistance against the government, which symbolizes an interesting conflict – the country's people have one visual identity, while their government uses a different one, rooted in the totalitarian past.

Protest in red and white

For eight years now, Bazlova has been curious about the techniques used in Belarusian embroidery, the so-called vyshyvanka. She was then inspired by an exhibition that highlighted the fact that seamstresses who had done this kind of embroidery in the past did not have access to formal education. In the absence of other means of expression, colors and materials became a type of communication. Red symbolizes blood and life, linen and white – purity and freedom. "This is how ornamentation became a code for our national history," says Rufina.

Rufina Bazlova

In August, she decided to make a series on Instagram in which various situations related to the political reality of Belarus were depicted using this style of embroidery. She defines the current events as a national awakening. "Big changes are coming, and like previous events, they deserve to be recorded using the same code," says Rufina who, in addition to following local media, was informed by friends about what was happening in the country – some of them were arrested in one of the many instances of police violence during demonstrations. "Sometimes I wonder if I can feel the same energy that people feel at the protest. Now many Belarusians who live in other countries are trying to help – my way of helping is through limited edition T-shirts and bags, we send part of the proceeds to charities in Belarus. "

More than a new beginning

When we compare what's happening in Bulgaria and Belarus, Sofia and Minsk, Nadzeya Makeyeva from Chrysalis says that there are many common phenomena.

"Here too there is a definite break between the generations. Until recently, there was a tendency for artists to become isolated into small groups that rarely interacted. Older generations stood aside and barricaded themselves in the State Artists Union, which is very difficult to get into. Some exchange of knowledge and experience happens at the Academy of Arts, but especially among teachers born and raised in the USSR, this often happens in a very conservative way – and these discrepancies provoke protests among younger artists."

Theater director Vasilena Radeva during a protest in front of the Belarusian Embassy in Sofia, August 13, Photographer: Svetoslav Todorov

According to Makeyeva, art is one of the great means of combating the status quo, as it offers strength, inspiration and faith in spite of difficult times and repressive measures. Also, against the backdrop of pro-government propaganda, it helps crystallize what is actually happening in the country. "Art is an independent analysis of the moods, events, changes that society is going through. It is a universal language that can reach people from different countries.”

According to her, art also serves a psychological purpose for the demonstrations, the largest in the country's history and the first in nearly a decade. "At a difficult time, when people feel extremely frustrated and discouraged, an artist can react and express those feelings. It's the same for writers like me – when my thoughts are heavy, I reach for the pencil. "

You can follow Rufina Bazlova's work on  instagram.com/rufinabazlova

Chrysalis collects interesting work from the Belarus art scene at chrysalismag.by and instagram.com/chrysalismagazine

Sasha Kulak's projects are at  sashakulak.com and instagram.com/sashakulak