Press release 26 March 2025
Open Group invites us to repeat the sounds of war in their artwork Repeat After Me II
How can we depict war without showing destroyed cities or mutilated bodies? The artist collective Open Group invites us to repeat the sounds of war that have become familiar to Ukrainians. The participatory video installation Repeat After Me II will be on display at Serlachius from 12 April to 20 July 2025.
The core group of Open Group currently consists of artists Yuriy Biley, Pavlo Kovach, and Anton Varga. They recorded the sounds of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 among internally displaced persons in Ukraine. The second video was filmed in 2024 among refugees who fled the war outside Ukraine.
The artwork, influenced by karaoke, invites viewers to repeat the sounds of missiles, airstrikes, drones, tanks, rockets, and sirens. In the video, Ukrainian refugees briefly introduce themselves, present the sounds of war familiar to them, and invite the audience to repeat them. Repeating the sounds takes viewers from the reality of peacetime to the midst of war.
The initial impetus for the artwork Repeat After Me came from a leaflet published by the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture and Information shortly before Russia’s invasion. The purpose was to prepare the civilian population for various attacks and advise on how to act during air raids and other dangerous situations. It was crucial to learn to recognize the sounds of different weapon systems, as it could save lives in moments of danger.
Serlachius takes a stand for Ukraine
Repeat After Me has been on show in various forms in many European countries in recent years. It was presented in the summer of 2024 at the Venice Biennale, in the Polish pavilion. Pauli Sivonen, Director of Serlachius Museums, saw the artwork there and managed to bring it to Serlachius.
The video installation will be exceptionally displayed in the Kivijärvi Hall, which is being used for an exhibition for the first time. According to Sivonen, showing the artwork at Serlachius is fundamentally a political gesture.
“We want to raise awareness in our country about the reality of war and the fate of Ukrainian refugees. We also want to influence matters, participate in the discussion on a political topic important to us and all Finns”, he states.
Founded in 2012 in Lviv, Western Ukraine, the name Open Group directly derives from the group’s artistic activities. In their work, the members of the community strive to create open situations where they explore the processes of interaction and encounter between different communities, social phenomena, and experiences that unite generations.
The exhibition is accompanied by a publication, written by Ukrainian art historian Olga Tykhonova and Pauli Sivonen, that explores the experiences of war and how art can address war. The book contains texts in Finnish, Ukrainian, and English.
Further information: Pauli Sivonen, Serlachius, Director, tel. +358 (0)50 566 1355, pauli.sivonen@serlachius.fi
Image requests: Susanna Yläjärvi, Serlachius, Information Officer, tel. +358 (0)50 560 0156, susanna.ylajarvi@serlachius.fi
Press releases and photographs: https://serlachius.fi/en/for-media
Serlachius is open:
in the winter season, 1 September–31 May, from Tuesday to Sunday, 11 am–6 pm
in the summer season, 1 June–31 August, every day 10 am-6 pm
Visiting addresses:
Serlachius Manor, Joenniementie 47, Mänttä, Finland
Serlachius Headquarters, R. Erik Serlachiuksen katu 2, Mänttä, Finland
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