FRAME 18

ART BUILD – Thomas Gallagher was invited to contribute to the project Sunflower Variations – this is Ukraine | Варіації Sоняшника – це Україна by KS Lack and Introspective Collective. The upcoming show opening/fundraiser will be Saturday, November 9 from 3 to 5 p.m.

The work consists of 27 sunflower prints (originally created for the book Kyivsky Waltz—a love story | Київський Вальс - любовна історія by KS Lack) representing the 27 administrative regions of Ukraine, which includes those currently occupied by Russia. Sunflower Variations acts as a counterpoint to the book: while Kyivsky Waltz focuses on memory, the Sunflower Variations address the present invasion and ongoing humanitarian crisis.

The sunflowers were created through reductive carving and printed on a Vandercook SP15 letterpress. They were individually brayered and finished with the suminagashi marbling technique. Each print hangs in its own “window frame” created in styles ranging from the simple to the symbolic. Many of the windows are damaged, in ways seen or un-seen, but no matter what state the window frame is in, its sunflower always remains unharmed.

Frame 18 is a faux concrete structure, damaged to reveal a steel rebar infrastructure, with details in gloss black and red. It is an attempt to symbolically represent the literal and figurative gravity of the conflict, to elicit an uncomfortable emotional response. When War and War Crimes become interchangeable, bombed out ruins of civilian housing structures become the ghosts of lives extinguished through death and displacement. 15" x 20" – plaster, steel rebar, plexiglass, latex paint.

Statement from Thomas Gallagher:

Within two weeks of the Russian invasion of (further incursion into) Ukraine, Shell announced its intent to withdraw from Russian oil and gas. A move likely meant to protect them from public critique as it became clear that these revenue streams were bankrolling Russia’s war.

The future of pipelines carrying Russian gas to Europe through Ukraine was already in question, but when Russia threatened to turn off the Nord Stream pipeline tap, the spotlight turned to Europe, to Germany in particular. How would Europe reconcile their condemnation of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with their continued consumption of Russian natural gas?

I have lived through decades of mobilizations to raise awareness of, to put an end to, the United States’ extractive resource wars. Annexation of land is common to these conflicts; land rich in resources or land used to transport and/or process those resources. Not just on foreign soil (the war in Iraq, the incessant saber rattling concerning Venezuela, etc.), but domestically as well; annexation of public and private land following Hurricane Katrina, incursion into and destruction of native lands with the Keystone and Dakota Access Pipelines, use of eminent domain to force people from their homes, etc.

The narrative of “U.S. energy independence” is a smokescreen to hide the sad truth: even in this age of climate catastrophe, the vast majority of this new fossil fuel infrastructure is being built to maximize export profits. 2022 saw U.S. liquid natural gas exports to Europe TRIPLE to offset the drop in Russian imports, and the U.S. became the world’s largest LNG exporter in 2023. It is a shell game with multi-nationals reaping massive profits from rising international market prices directly related to the their public “divestment” from Russian hydrocarbons.

Oil and gas are the life blood of war – without them, the war machine grinds to a halt. We cannot go back in time to make Shell (and other fossil fuel mutli-nationals) reconsider the consequences of their business model, but perhaps the movement for Climate Justice, with their demand to #EndFossilFuels can show us a path to peace.

All of the author’s proceeds from Kyivsky Waltz as well as funds raised from an auction of the Sunflower Variations art work will be donated to Razom, an NGO dedicated to providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine.