Zone of Alienation X Disturbed Ground
Khrystyna Kirik X Mark Bain
00:00
undo despot X Zeynep Schilling
00:00
noorj X sevilâ nariman-qızı X alen hast X myk rudik
00:00
Kantine am BerghainFree with registration
Artists from various disciplines and geographies will perform during the event, including undo despot X Zeynep Schilling, Khrystyna Kirik X Mark Bain, X u2203 studio, noorj X sevilâ nariman-qızı X alen hast X myk rudik. Their practices span sound, performance, digital media, architectural intervention, and more.
The evening will feature three newly developed performances, two of which are work-in-progress presentations emerging from the Goethe-Institut supported project Disturbed Ground by ∄ and CTM Festival. Hosted at ∄’s experimental production space, u2203 studio, in Kyiv in June 2025, the works will continue to be developed for full premieres at CTM Festival in January 2026. Developed in close dialogue with Ukrainian scientists and ecologists, these works respond to the ecological impact of war through different sensorial and conceptual approaches.
Zone of Alienation insists on witnessing both sweeping ecological ruptures, as well as the smaller, more granular moments of loss that so often escape official record. Through the artworks presented tonight, the understanding of war can be expanded beyond statistics and maps — into the sonic, the affective, and storytelling. These performances are a call to consider our relationship with land, river, and ruin — and to collectively refuse to let ecological destruction sink into silence.
Sub-sur-face, by Khrystyna Kirik
Sub-sur-face, by Khrystyna Kirik
Khrystyna Kirik and Mark Bain’s piece with visuals from alen hast and myk rudik of u2203 studio explores the impact of military explosions on soil. Their performance transforms the brutal force of detonations — spanning regions from Sumy and Kharkiv in the northeast to Kherson in the south — into an embodied sensory experience. By amplifying low-frequency vibrations normally inaudible to the human ear and employing archisonic techniques, the work activates both the space and the bodies within it, physically conveying the experience of destruction.
undo despot and Zeynep Schilling turn their focus to contaminated water bodies. Their work draws on scientific data tracing the pollution of rivers and reservoirs — from the aftermath of the Kakhovka dam’s collapse to toxic residues left by military equipment in waterways like the Oskil and Seym. Blending ecological research with mythological symbolism, their performance reimagines the river as both a vessel of memory and a site of continuous transformation.
Both performances are in development as part of the ongoing ∄ X CTM project Disturbed Ground and reflect a deep engagement with the ecological realities of war.
The programme also features an independent work co-created by noorj and sevilâ nariman-qızı, artists from Crimea, Ukraine. Their performance offers a poetic response to ecological ruination, centering on the mass death of dolphins in the Black Sea.
In addition, the evening includes a fourth work — State of Latitude — an immersive installation by Khrystyna Kirik and myk rudik, with alen hast from u2203 studio. Developed during ∄’s Echoes of the Earth residency in 2024, it comprises four audiovisual chapters that trace the fragile beauty and devastation of southern and eastern Ukraine’s landscapes.
Accompanying the programme is a newly created visual work by u2203 studio, envisioning the ground itself as a living cell — a fragile body ruptured by war.
revieval, by noorj
revieval, by noorj
The event is organised by the Ukrainian Institute in Germany in cooperation with UNIGHT, and ∄.
The works by Mark Bain X Krystyna Kirik with u2203 Studio, and undo despot X Zeynep Schilling were realised in the framework of »Disturbed Ground« and is a co-production with ∄ and CTM Festival, funded by the Goethe-Institut Co-production Fund, and supported by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion. Mark Bain X Krystyna Kirik X u2203 studio is further supported within the framework of CTM’s Radio Lab with Deutschlandfunk Kultur, ORF, and tekhnē. tekhnē is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
This event is financially supported by GVL.