Alternative gallery Podzemka shut down in Minsk

Staff of the gallery called a decision of its shutdown “unexpected and perfidious”.

First rumours about shutdown of Podzemka Minsk art gallery, in fact the only place where free artists could have exhibitions and independent writers could present their books, appeared last week. The artists, cooperating with the gallery, said it may be connected with exhibitions that irritated the Belarusian authorities.

Hanna Chystaserdava, Podzemka administrator, told the Charter’97 press center the gallery faced ”some problems”. According to the administrator, it’s too early to speak the gallery is closed forever.

“We wanted some days for a timeout,” the gallery administrator told on Monday. “We still continue to work. I think the situation will clear up. I can just say 99 per cent of show room will be closed.”

The situation with Podzemka gallery has cleared up today. The gallery administration sent a statement to mass media saying about the official decision to shut down the gallery. The statement is signed by Podzemka director Valyantsina Kisyalyova and administrator Hanna Chystaserdava.

“In the process of re-organization of a private legal entity, on which base Podzemka art gallery was opened and has been working since 2004, a structural unit headed by Valyantsina Kisyalyova and art-director Hanna Chystaserdava was cancelled. New leadership ignored all agreements and said perfidiously and categorically the further cooperation was impossible,” the statement says. “in this connection, Podzemka art gallery officially announced termination of its work on the address 43 Independence Avenue.”

Former directors of the gallery said they didn’t expect the gallery to be closed. At the same time they note the gallery will continue to work on the Internet and offer to visit website podzemka.org and artpodzemkaLJ community artpodzemka.

“It came as a surprise for us, we were negotiating and planned to work at least till summer. This decision of the juridical person was perfidious towards us. This structure doesn’t consider work of gallery necessary. They probably expected to see glamour here, but we exhibited works and organize book presentations by the best people of Belarus,” Podzemka director Vlyantsina Kisyalyova told the Charter’97 press center.

Such people as Adam Hlobus, Ales Rodzin, Alyaksei Fyodarau, Ruslan Vashkevich, Alyaksandr Nekrashevich, Andrei Lyankevich, Hanna Koushar, Vasil Pachytski, Nika Sandors, Ihar Varashkevch, Dziyana Shyk, Andrei Kapustnikau, and others have had exhibitions and presentations in Podzemka art gallery for the last year.