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IHME Helsinki Commission 2025: The Forest – to Poland and Berlin
Ukrainian artist Zhanna Kadyrova’s IHME Helsinki Commission 2025, The Forest, is being shown in Europe in the winter and spring. It opened at the Arsenal Gallery in Bialystok, Poland, on 5.12.2025, as part of the Avulsion exhibition showcasing Kadyrova’s work. Avulsion includes a total of ten of her art projects.
“Avulsion” is a medical term meaning the traumatic tearing off of a part of the body. Figuratively, it can refer to a sudden change, breaking away, or rejection that takes place in a culture, an environment, or in social ties, and caused by someone else exerting force or a crisis. The exhibition is open until 15.2.2026.
In The Forest Kadyrova addresses: the consequences of the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam during Russia’s war of aggression; the past and future of the Zaporizhzhia region; and nature’s regenerative capacity. In Helsinki The Forest was on display at the Power Plant Museum at Vanhankaupunginkoski 24.8–2.10.2025. The Arsenal Gallery also occupies an old power plant.
In line with IHME Helsinki’s ecologically sustainable practices, the oval table that forms part of the artwork was not sent to Poland; instead, the gallery decided to have a table built to fit the space. With the exception of the camera-obscura images, all of the material for the artwork is being transported electronically.
The Forest will also be shown at Kunstraum Kreuzberg/Bethanien in Berlin, 24.1–22.3.2026. There, Kadyrova will be participating in a group exhibition titled Echoes of Tumult, as part of the CTM Festival. The show will bring together works that bear witness to and address violence, systemic failures, and vulnerability. Besides Kadyrova, it also features works by twelve other artists or artist groups.
We are delighted that The Forest is continuing its journey so soon after Helsinki.
