I received an email from Ukrainian artist Sasha Kurmaz a while back, outlining details of his artwork The Temple of Transfiguration (2022). It took me a while to get my head around, but when I did, I knew I had to include it in the Archive of Destruction.
The work is a critique of the very strange support by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and takes the form of a converted ex-Soviet military truck. Kurmaz has installed a shiny gold crucifix on the roof and various religious artefacts inside.
It’s a deeply moving, provocative reflection on the devastation of Ukrainian communities and cities, the gradual erosion of the truck, the moral decay of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, and the potential targeting of the work itself by pro-Russian or Church-aligned actors seeking to advance their own narratives.
Photo: Sasha Kurmaz, The Temple of Transfiguration, 2022.