The exhibition we are opening this evening moves us both as art lovers and as democrats. At any rate, that is how I felt just now when I had the privilege, together with my wife and a few others, of marvelling at the truly wonderful paintings from Odesa* over in the Central Hall of the Gemäldegalerie.
They hang there in all their beauty, masterworks of European painting from the Museum of Western and Eastern Art in Odesa. Most of them can be seen for the very first time ever in Berlin. For example, the still life by Cornelis de Heem, the Dutch master of the 17th century, which made a particular impression on me during my tour of the exhibition: an opulent baroque work with fruit and an orange-red lobster, whose colours contrast brightly against the dark background. The painting right next to it is a very similar still life from the collection of the Gemäldegalerie here in Berlin by Cornelis’ father, Jan Davidzoon de Heem. Picture pairings such as this provide us with new insights into art history, and they bring home to us how many links there are between the collections in Odesa and Berlin, and to what extent they are similar in terms of artists, genres and subjects.
However, what you cannot see when looking at these works of art from Odesa is the dramatic story behind their rescue after the start of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The mere fact that most of these paintings have a simple wooden frame rather than an ornamental one is a clear indication that these are not loans we usually find in major art exhibitions. The great achievement of this exhibition is that it also highlights what the masterworks from the museum in Odesa mean to people in Ukraine, how they were brought to Berlin to protect them from Russian bombs and missiles – and how important it is that we continue to help Ukrainians to also defend their cultural home.
As an art lover and as the Federal President, I am therefore delighted to be patron. And I am pleased that we can open the exhibition together this evening. What a lovely moment in German-Ukrainian friendship!
This exhibition shows us that Russia’s bloody war of aggression is also a war against Ukraine’s culture. Odesa’s beautiful old town, which I, too, love and where the Museum of Western and Eastern Art is situated, has been attacked by missiles time and again. The famous Transfiguration Cathedral was badly damaged. And that is just one of many examples. In countless other Ukrainian towns and cities, listed buildings continue to be damaged, cultural institutions destroyed and works of art stolen.
The attacks against museums, theatres, operas and libraries are intended to wipe out Ukraine’s cultural memory. They are aimed against many things that connect Ukrainians of all generations with each other, things that they love and appreciate, that give them something to hold onto and guide them, that have become their cultural home – such as Still Life with Lobster from the Museum of Western and Eastern Art in Odesa, which many people in Ukraine know and that some have hanging in their kitchen in the shape of a poster or postcard.
At the same time, however, this exhibition makes us aware of the resolve, courage and strength with which Ukrainians are also defending their cultural home. Mr Poronyk, following 24 February 2022, you and your staff immediately began to protect your museum with sandbags. You took the paintings off the walls, packed them into cases and sent these most precious works to an emergency storage facility. You then asked your colleagues here at the Alte Nationalgalerie and at the Gemäldegalerie for help because the works of art were not safe in this emergency storage facility and were at risk from mould.
Just like you, countless people all over Ukraine are working tirelessly to preserve your country’s cultural heritage – and have been doing so for three long years. They take paintings, sculptures and books to safety. They search for stolen works. They document every detail of historical monuments at risk so that, if necessary, they can be restored true to the original.
Many also help to keep cultural life going despite the war. Mr Poronyk, Ms Gliebova, you marked your museum’s centenary last year in the absence of the collection of paintings that was being celebrated. You and many colleagues are again organising smaller exhibitions focusing on contemporary art – although only the number of people that fit into the air raid shelter can be admitted to the museum at a time. Others are developing virtual tours so that masterworks are not forgotten. Or they ensure that theatres and concert halls can remain open.
All of these people bring light at a time of darkness. All these people ensure that time and again Ukrainians are able to muster renewed strength, renewed courage, renewed optimism. And all these people continue to need our support!
I would like to thank the many people in our country engaged in the efforts to preserve Ukraine’s cultural heritage. And I would like to express my special thanks to you here in this hall, who have helped on the German and Ukrainian sides to bring the paintings from Odesa to Berlin, to restore them, to get them into shape for this exhibition and to exhibit them here – in the Gemäldegalerie in the coming five months and then in the Kurpfälzisches Museum in Heidelberg from this autumn.
Together, you have turned the spotlight on Ukraine’s diverse ties with Western European culture. You are breathing life into and intensifying the friendship between our countries. Not least, you are strengthening solidarity with Ukraine! I would like to thank you all most sincerely!
I hope that this exhibition will be seen by many people from Germany, Europe – if possible, people from all over the world – and that it brings the wide spectrum of visitors into conversation with one another. I hope that Ukrainians who have found refuge here in Germany will find a piece of home in the paintings. Above all, however, I hope that Still Life with Lobster and all the other paintings can be returned soon to where they belong: to the Museum of Western and Eastern Art in Odesa, in a free and independent Ukraine in which nobody has to fear bombs or missiles.
Ukraine needs our continued support in order to ensure that this hope becomes reality. Mr Tochytskyi, Ukraine can continue to rely on us: we Germans stand shoulder to shoulder with you – as you defend your freedom and your independence, of course, but also as you protect your cultural heritage, on the path to a just peace and a future in the European Union.
*in line with Ukrainian spelling