Statement from Marion Ackermann, Director General of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, on the events in Ukraine
01 March 2022Statement from Marion Ackermann, Director General of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, on the events in Ukraine
We are devastated by the news currently coming out of Ukraine. The Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (Dresden State Art Collections; SKD) condemn Russia’s war of aggression, which contravenes international law, and emphasise the right of the Ukrainian people to freedom and self-determination.
The SKD stand alongside the people of Ukraine and thus alongside freedom, peace, tolerance and human rights. This also means the freedom of the arts. For this reason, we are suspending all SKD dealings with Russian state institutions for the time being. We remain in close communication, however, with the many colleagues and artists in Russia who, at great personal danger to themselves, are courageously speaking out against the Russian military aggression in Ukraine.
The SKD are profoundly convinced that the arts are capable of building bridges, through cultural diplomacy, even where politics fails. The exhibition “Dreams of Freedom. Romanticism in Russia and Germany”, which was held in Moscow and Dresden and attracted great public interest, proved that it is possible, even in difficult times, to implement projects that deepen our knowledge of one another’s culture and so enhance our mutual understanding. In particular in countries where democracy is under threat, this cultural commitment seems to us extremely important.
The SKD are in direct contact with representatives of state museums and private art institutions in Ukraine and have offered them support in protecting their art treasures. To further accelerate these efforts, the SKD are currently working to set up a digital hub that will facilitate coordination and exchange of information with Ukrainian institutions and colleagues. We shall be making this centre available to all interested parties.
Further increasing the visibility of our close cultural and historical links with Ukraine is a common resolution for this year and those that follow. This intention will be anchored in extensive, in-depth insights into the magnificent artistic and cultural traditions of East-Central Europe, and will take the form of various special exhibitions, seminars and conferences, artist residencies, and exchange programs for curators and other museum professionals. It is in the very best interest of the SKD to intensify our collaboration with the art and museum scene most especially in Ukraine, but also in other countries in East-Central Europe.
Marion Ackermann, Director General of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden
