Process Wall: Olga Karpenko: Helsinki–Kyiv 9.4.–19.4.2026
“Helsinki–Kyiv”
By Olga Karpenko
9.4.-19.4.2026
Opening 8.4.2026 17:00-19:00
Myymälä2 proudly presents “Helsinki-Kyiv”, the first solo exhibition in Finland by Ukrainian artist Olga Karpenko. The exhibition is a fascinating visual chronicle of Karpenko’s living experiences across the two cities. As a Flâneuse* around Helsinki Karpenko began to notice visual and structural parallels between the two urban environments: power plants, transport systems, and appealing architectural forms. Her works reveal how infrastructure and everyday labor form the underlying framework of urban life. The difference is that in Helsinki this structure is protected, while in Kyiv it’s under constant threat.
In her watercolors she reflects on the value of normal life itself. So the image of a chimney with smoke ceases to be a neutral industrial landscape, but becomes the personification of the labor of those who ensure the functioning of the city, an image of the system on which everyday life depends. Electricity, warmth, and transport are created by human labor, that is no less significant than heroic deeds.
The artistic practice of Olga Karpenko is strongly rooted in attentive observation of everyday life and the structures that sustain it. Her graphic work focuses on urban spaces, natural elements, and infrastructure as essential frameworks that enable human existence.
(* A Flâneuse is a woman who strolls through urban spaces with observation, reflection, and intellectual curiosity, analogous to the male flâneur.)
ARTIST BIO
Olga Karpenko was born, lives and works in Kyiv (Ukraine). She is a graphic artist, a psychologist-consultant, who also holds a PhD in the field of socionics, Master of Mathematics. She published over 200 scientific and applied works in the field of personality psychology, management psychology, socionics and management, and a scientific monograph “Statics-Dynamics in Graphics and Picture Tests”. Olga Karpenko is a member of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine. She is an active member of the art associations “Come Back Alive!” and “Kyiv Pleinairs”. Her works are in private collections worldwide.
Since 2022, her work has responded to life in Ukraine during war. The watercolor series “Lyutyj 2022” is about a perception of war by a deeply peaceful person. “Lyutyj” isn’t just a Ukrainian word for “February”, it also means “evil”, “cruel”, “furious”. Familiar places, habitual routes, ordinary urban landmarks became marked with the stamp of war.
At the same time, Olga began the project #KyivCityExpress, a systematic artistic exploration of the 20 stations of Kyiv’s urban railway. Stations, passengers, transit spaces are observed with careful attention, emphasizing the persistence of urban rhythms even under extraordinary circumstances.
Olga Karpenko is an Artist at Risk (AR) Safe Haven Helsinki Resident, organised and curated by Perpetuum Mobile – PM ry (PM).
Olga Karpenko residence is supported by The City of Helsinki, The Finnish Arts and Culture Agency (Kuvi), and the Ministry of Education and Culture.
