A major photography exhibition pairing Wolfgang Tillmans and Boris Mikhailov opens today at the Yermilov Centre in Kharkiv, Ukraine, despite ongoing Russian attacks on the city. Titled "Pairs Skating" (April 25–September 28), the show is organized by the non-profit RIBBON International and curated by Maria Isserlis and Tatiana Kochubinska. It features Mikhailov's never-before-shown Crimean seascapes from the 1990s alongside Tillmans's works including "The State We’re In" (2015), with all prints produced specially for the venue, which is a certified bunker allowing public access during the war.
The exhibition matters because it brings two internationally renowned photographers into direct dialogue in a war zone, using art to address themes of fragility, resilience, and political restriction. Mikhailov, a Kharkiv native, and Tillmans, a vocal Ukraine supporter, together confront the ongoing war through images of water, borders, and Soviet absurdity. The show marks Tillmans's first exhibition in Ukraine and represents a defiant cultural statement amid Russia's intensified attacks on Kharkiv, demonstrating how art can persist and provoke conversation even under siege.