Stand for Ukraine | War, Trauma & Resilience

STAND FOR UKRAINE: THE ARCHIVE OF RUPTURE & RECLAMATION Series by Anastasia Klymenko Curatorial Overview Stand for Ukraine is a visual and somatic archive of psychological survival at the intersection of full-scale war, displacement, and neurodivergence. Rooted in the lived experience of navigating acute trauma and bipolar disorder during the initial invasion of February 2022, the series explores how the human psyche fragments under existential terror—and subsequently rebuilds through creative agency. Here, collage serves not merely as aesthetic expression, but as an ontology of resilience: deconstructing the chaos of war, pharmacological disruption, and physical pain to assemble an undeniable language of endurance. Artist Testimony: The Geography of Survival "We woke on the morning of February 24 to explosions. We gathered what we could, packed our three cats into carriers, and moved into the unknown. The days blurred into an excruciating continuum of somatic tension, severe migraines, and sensory overload. Managing bipolar disorder requires precise pharmacological support; facing acute medicine shortages forced a dangerous rationing of doses, triggering an intense escalation toward mania—sleeplessness, physical burning, and acute hypervigilance. As spring returned and treatment stabilized, perception shifted. Early sunrises, lucid dreams, and natural awakening became anchors against internal and external devastation. Art in this context operates as active sublimation and somatic reclamation. I believe in a collective sphere where creative endurance is shared. Amidst violence and displacement, the core human desire remains elemental: the return home, the embrace of family, and the restoration of safety." — Anastasia Klymenko