Flashback. Ukrainian media art of the 1990s

The reference to the ‘90s is justified for several reasons. First, the cycle of interest in this complex and ambiguous watershed decade has reached its historical point. It is understood that the ‘90s are now history; it’s time for analysis, not just reflection, time to break existing stereotypes and schemes. But the gradation of this return to the ‘90s is like a FLASHBACK, a flash of memories of the past – what in cinematography is known as a “reverse shot.” Second, the ‘90s were the first decade of Ukrainian independence. And although contemporary art came here somewhat earlier in the decline of the Soviet era, in the ‘90s it gained new impetus for its development as a new cultural identity. In the first decade this development changed noticeable in terms of its figurative and technical means. New priorities appeared related primarily to the media vector – art using new technology, video.

It should be noted that these trends in the “media revolution” corresponded to the general context: one of the main themes of the ‘90s was the definitive transition of consciousness to the screen and depiction of the world through the camera lens. An important feature of Ukrainian media art of those years is that it wasn’t tempted to fly into the sphere of so-called high media, nor was it involved in projects charged strictly with experimenting with cyberspace, computer networks and virtual reality. This could make Ukrainian media art of the ‘90s seem archaic or even naïve, mainly because of technical limitations. But there is another side – non-trivial visual examinations and solutions. Media in the hands of Ukrainian authors becomes a special tool for creating moving images that relevantly reflect the content and spirit of the time.