Prominent Ukrainian artist Nikita Kadan is launching a new exhibition titled 'A New Integrity' at Pavilion 13 in Kyiv. The installation features prostheses suspended in mid-air, accompanied by a soundscape of recorded testimonies from veterans who have experienced limb loss during the ongoing Russian invasion. The project, commissioned by the non-profit RIBBON International, uses these mechanical replacements to symbolize the broader losses of territory, people, and future perspectives that Ukraine has endured.
This exhibition matters because it addresses the visible and invisible traumas of a society where amputees have become a common presence on city streets. By focusing on the prosthesis rather than the wounded body, Kadan explores the 'new integrity' of a nation forced to reconstruct itself. The work highlights the role of contemporary art as a vital tool for processing national grief and the physical reality of war while preserving the dignity and agency of those who have served.