There are enough earthly tragedies perpetrated by man and nature to keep poster exhibitions—or PfTs, Posters for Trauma—running for decades. Among the latest in a wave of protest, cautionary and advocacy shows is “From Chernobyl to COVID-19: Events That Changed the World.” The exhibition is a collection of works that “dissect some of the most poignant events in recent history,” say its organizers, Olga Severina of PosterTerritory and Oleg Veklenko of The 4th Block.
Focusing on these calamities and the combined effect they’ve had on the planet at large, “the posters are not just exposing a world in distress,” they are looking into the future, searching for a path to a better world—a world without these and other seemingly inevitable disasters.
“The environment is always changing, but there are certain pivotal moments in human history that leave a permanent scar on the world,” and drastically alter humankind’s relationship with the planet and with all other living things.
Here’s more about Severina and Veklenko’s respective organizations:
The 4th Block is a graphic designer’s exhibition, held every three years in Kharkiv, Ukraine. The exhibit takes its name from nuclear reactor number 4, which was destroyed in the devastating explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 1986. The 4th Block posters explore the latest trends and innovations in environmentally conscious graphic designs and promote personal and social changes that are mindful of the natural world.PosterTerritory is a multimedia platform that organizes poster campaigns in cities around the world. Founded by an exhibition curator and graphic artist Olga Severina, PosterTerritory launches international poster exhibits that tackle a variety of social, political and environmental issues faced by humanity on a daily basis. The World After is the latest project by PosterTerritory, where graphic artists from all over the globe imagine what the world will be like after the COVID pandemic.
The initial run of “From Chernobyl to COVID-19” was up through April 9 in conjunction with Missouri State University.
