Olga Ignatovich

Olga Ignatovich. A rare view of WWII through the lens of a Soviet female photographer

We would like to invite you to an exhibition and panel discussion “Olga Ignatovich: In the Shadow of Big Brother. A rare view of WWII through the lens of a Soviet female photographer”.

Language: English
The entrance is free, please register

The event is based on the recently discovered war archive of Olga Ignatovich (1905-1984), one of the seven Soviet women photographers who captured the Second World War. Most of the negatives taken by Olga Ignatovich were considered lost until they were found by photographer and collector Arthur Bondar. This truly unique discovery allows us not only to see Olga Ignatovich’s photographic talent much more fully, but also to identify the true authorship of many images, which in the post-war years were attributed to Boris Ignatovich (her brother).

Olga Ignatovich’s visual heritage includes photographs from the liberation of the Auschwitz and Maidanek concentration camps, also war reports from the 1-st Ukrainian front and images of Vienna recovering after the war, where the headquarters of the 1-st Ukrainian front were located.

Women photographers during World War II made significant contributions to the documentation of the war, in often challenging and perilous conditions. While their work may not be as widely recognized as that of their male counterparts, their inputs are essential to understanding the wartime experience in the USSR and Eastern Europe. Olga Ignatovich’s war photographs serve not only as historical records, but also as powerful visual narratives that offer a more intimate and human perspective on the war.

Participants:
Arthur Bondar, photographer and founder of WWII/ABC
Oksana Yushko, multidisciplinary artist, curator
Evgenia Maximova, visual artist
Olga Malashkina, history scholar

The panel discussion will address issues of gender and truth in photography, and the role of photographic archives in times of turbulence and crisis. We look forward to seeing you there!