Mykola Ridnyi (b. 1985 Ukraine)
Lost Baggage, 2019
Site-specific installation (5 fiberglass pots with ceramic oxide, prints)

The 12th Kaunas Biennial commissioned Ridnyi to create this new project, called Lost Baggage. It is inspired by the figure of Esther Lurie, a Jewish artist from Kaunas who made a series of drawings that show the characters, life conditions and streets of the ghetto. According to evidence, she hid her drawings in ceramic pots and buried them in the ground to conceal them from the Nazis. Nevertheless, they were never found, and this story evolved into a legend. In his installation, Ridnyi hides Lurie’s images in five human-size ceramic pots, and they only become visible through a peephole. The images embody the dark side of Kaunas history and the Jewish minority, while the location of the work – the Kaunas Train Station – emphasizes the dramatic idea of the baggage which the traveler is not allowed to take on their journey.