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Vitalij Zdebskij
Vitalij is a graduate of the Donetsk College of Arts and Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Art. He is inspired by pop culture and world events. His specialization is graphic art, but he is just as comfortable with collages and assemblages. He participated in many exhibitions around Ukraine, most notably Euro 2012 and the Union of Artists of Ukraine.
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Sent Away
acrylic, markers, color paper, 19.7 x 10.2 in
Created on March 27, 2022
in private collection
While working on this painting Vitalij was inspired by a very specific event. On the first day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine (February 24, 2022) two Russian warships approached a small island off the coast of Ukraine in the Black Sea that had a regiment of only 13 border guards. One of the ships transmitted demands stating: “I, Russian warship,… put down your arms and surrender,…” To which Ukrainian soldiers responded: “Russian warship, go fuck yourself.” This moment inspired the name of the painting.
The painting symbolizes an answer of the Ukrainian people to the Russian invasion. At the center is the Russian dictator Putin as a child in a Soviet pioneer (Boy Scout) uniform hinting at his upbringing and archaic thinking. He is playing with toy tanks and military vehicles showing his disregard for human life just as any kid does not care for the “life” of his toys. He is holding a toy airplane nose of which is deflated, symbolizing his deflated manhood and absence of honor. In his right hand he is holding an oversized toy phone receiver, saying: “Really? Is that what they said?” to the response,“Yes, go fuck yourself!” His paper hat is the ship itself. Child-putin is standing on a broken stool that is barely holding up by a blood red string evoking a colossus on clay feet. Finally, in the corner we see three ballet dancers dancing Swan Lake. This ballet is significant in Soviet history as it was broadcasted by all television channels for three days during the August Coup of 1991 that ultimately resulted in the USSR’s collapse. One of the dancers is holding a Ukrainian flag marking the country that is ending Putin’s regime. The prevailing background color is red and burgundy standing for blood of his own people and now thousands of Ukrainians that is on this man's hands no matter how clean and sparkly his uniform might seem.
Incompetent Loser
acrylic, markers, color paper, 19.7 x 10.2 in
Created on April 17, 2022
This painting in the series tries to expose the Orwellian idiocracy that is ruling Russia at this time with no realization that something might be going the wrong way. The main character here is the Russian dictator Putin as a child. He is in a Soviet pioneer (Boy Scout) uniform hinting at his upbringing and archaic thinking. The toy tanks to the left underscore his disregard for human life just as any kid does not care for the “life” of his toys. The telephone booth that Putin is in says “Nuthouse” emphasizing the horrific absurdity of the situation that he created for the whole world and for himself.
He is talking to someone who is now asking him : ”What happened to the Moskva (meaning the warship Moskva)?”. Putin’s response is: “Everything is according to plan - she sank!”, while looking at the drawing of a sinking ship. There are a few themes that are touched upon here. The artist is poking fun at the Russian army that created this upside down world where every loss is presented as something else. Where ships are not sunk but are “promoted” to submarines, the army retreats only as a gesture of goodwill, and instead of explosion the word “clap” is used by the Russian press. However, there is a more sinister meaning in Putin’s words. In the beginning of his rule, in the year 2000, a large submarine Kursk sank in the north seas burying everyone on board. There was a speculation that it might have been a premeditated disaster. Few years later, when asked in an interview by Larry King about what happened to the Kursk submarine, Putin responded curtly and with a visible smirk: “She sank.” A goose at the bottom that is angrily pulling on Putin’s shorts is an illustration of a news-bit that was shown on major TV networks in Russia at the beginning of the current invasion. It was claimed that Ukraine under the guidance of the US was developing fighting geese that would take down Russian planes. The only voice of reason here is a boa - symbol of wisdom. The boa is taken out of the old Soviet cartoon and is in a state of shocked despair stating: “Such an incompetent loser”.
"Unmatched Weapons"
acrylic, markers, color paper, 19.7 x 10.2 in
Created on April 23, 2022
This piece is a play on a fairytale by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen: “The Emperor's New Clothes”. Putin is in the center and says into the phone that his weapons are unmatched around the world. Little does he know that his so-called second most powerful army is falling apart in the meantime. In the top left corner there is an already infamous Turkish-made drone - Bayraktar, that was so successful in bombing Russian forces at the beginning of the current invasion. The hat on Putin’s head is a half-sunk Russian warship Moskva. To the right, the former British prime minister and a good friend of Ukraine Boris Johnson is lighting up the phone cable rendering all orders to deploy new weapons useless. On the bottom, in an homage to an infamous painting “Dance” by Henri Matisse, five of his main ass-kissers are dancing around him: two international advisors, his press secretary, and two propaganda czarinas. Just like in the fairytale, Putin is standing with a proud look on his face not realizing that he is completely naked and his rocket is at half-past-six. Those around him are naked as well but have to praise him because without Putin they are nothing. Putin’s pale skin compared to the others is a reference to him spending much of his time in a remote bunker terrified of an attempt on his life or getting sick. The telephone booth that Putin is in says “Nuthouse” emphasizing the horrific absurdity of the situation that he created for the whole world and for himself.
About the creator of the Conflicted Art project:
Yevgen Nemchenko came to the United States from Ukraine 20 years ago. He has been an art and antiques collector for over 10 years focusing primarily on local and American art. However, when the invasion happened, he felt he had to help the situation in the only meaningful way he could. Yevgen used his network in the Ukrainian art world to purchase a number of works with the goal of helping artists personally and giving them and their work more global exposure. Doing so would encourage a way of looking beyond the often hyper-visual, dehumanizing, and sensationalist media pieces, but instead to look at Ukraine and the wider context of the war through the humanity, creativity, and personal stories coming of Ukrainian artists. Yevgen would like to thank his wife Kristina for her constant encouragement and support throughout this project, his longtime friend, Oleg V., for helping with graphic design and sharing in the costs, as well as a good friend, James Gregg, for his academic eye and editing.