The Firtash Foundation and Saatchi Gallery have announced the winners of UK/RAINE: Emerging Artists from the UK and Ukraine, the first ever open competition and exhibition worth £75,000 for emerging artists from the UK and Ukraine as part of the Days of Ukraine in the UK festival.
The competition received over 10,000 entries by 2,100 artists and the winners chosen from each of the five categories (installation, new media, painting, sculpture and street art) by a panel of internationally renowned judges will exhibit their work alongside the other shortlisted artists in an exhibition taking over one entire floor of the Saatchi Gallery from 24th November 2015 – 3rd January 2016.
The winners were announced at the private view on 23rd November. Each of the category winners received £10,000 with the overall winner of the prize receiving a further £20,000. The winner of the separate public vote received GB£5,000 for production costs towards their work, project or exhibition in order to support their future artistic endeavours.
Sergiy Petlyuk, Untitled, 2015
UK/RAINE Winner Sergiy Petlyuk
Category Winners
Installation: Roman Mikhaylov
New Media: Sergiy Petlyuk
Painting: Dominic Beattie
Sculpture: Jamie Fitzpatrick
Emerging Artists from the UK and Ukraine
Street Art: Dima Mykytenko
Winner of the Public Vote Olivia Bax
The work of the winning artists and the entire shortlist can be viewed on the Saatchi
Gallery’s website: www.saatchigallery.com/uk/raine
UK/RAINE: Emerging Artists from the UK and Ukraine was conceived as an open
competition and exhibition to find and give tangible support to the most imaginative and
talented young artists (including students on BA and MA courses), aged between 18-35
living and working or born in the UK and Ukraine at a vital stage in their formative careers.
The initiative is part of the ongoing collaboration between the Firtash Foundation and
Saatchi Gallery and aims to provide a high profile showcase, financial support for young
artists and help build a cultural bridge between our two countries.
The private view also saw a performance by Mariia Kulikovska in which the artist destroyed
the artworks recreated for the UK/RAINE exhibition. The series Homo Bulla cast from the
artist’s body in soap were remade for the exhibition after being destroyed at the Izolyatsia
centre in Donetsk, Ukraine. To echo the destruction of the sculptures, the artist used a
sledgehammer to damage the works in the presence of VIP guests and the other shortlisted
artists.
UK/RAINE continues the collaboration between the Firtash Foundation and Saatchi Gallery
as part of the Days of Ukraine in the UK festival and follows on from the huge success of
Premonition: Ukrainian Art Now, which ran at the Saatchi Gallery from 9th October – 3rd
November 2014.
About the Firtash Foundation
The Firtash Foundation is a private, international charitable fund focussed on supporting and
promoting Ukrainian art, literature and culture abroad. Established in 2008 by Lada and
Dmitry Firtash, the Foundation supports a number of initiatives dedicated to supporting
Ukraine’s youth by providing long-term and systematic support to education and cultural
initiatives in Ukraine and around the world. firtashfoundation.com
About Days of Ukraine in the UK
Days of Ukraine in the UK is the biggest festival dedicated to Ukrainian culture and was first
organised in 2013. It has since become a major platform to showcase Ukraine’s rich
heritage, traditions, culture and tremendous potential. This annual initiative aims to bring
Ukraine closer to Britain and is organised and funded by Firtash Foundation.
ukraine-days.co.uk
