A good kind friendship
Finding a true friend can be easy if you have an open heart, like when you were a child, and learning someone’s name and building sandcastles together was all it took. This exhibition is a reflection of the sincerity of two neurodivergent artists, Artem Oliinyk and Liam Ashworth, and their willingness to share their inspiration with each other and with us.
Artem Oliinyk lives in Kyiv. He loves walking his dog and doing karate, and he has been a member of the Workshop of Possibilities since 2016. Liam Ashworth lives in Manchester. He is also a sports enthusiast, as well as a foodie, and he has been Venture Arts’ artist for over 10 years. Workshop of Possibilities and Venture Arts are visual arts organisations working with neurodiverse artists.
The two met in February when Artem came to Manchester for a two-week residency at Venture Arts. Together they walked around the city, visited cultural institutions and shared their gastronomic preferences. Although Liam does not speak Ukrainian at all and Artem knows only a few English phrases, they quickly found common ground in the language of art.
Artem named this project A Good Kind Friendship because it was this friendship that brought two far-away artists together, helped them connect, and allowed them to create something beautiful.
This exhibition is proof that art can create a space of trust and warmth, where differences do not divide but enrich. In this encounter between two artists, there is something very simple and deeply human — the need to be heard and the desire to hear the other.
Olha Shyshlova is Deputy Art Director and Head of Educational Programs at the PinchukArtCentre, a psychologist, art therapist, board member of the Charitable Foundation Association of Parents of Children with Autism, as well as the author and host of educational programs for children and teenagers with disabilities at the PinchukArtCentre.
Artem Oliinyk’s residency at Venture Arts was supported by the British Council’s Creative Producers program.
Acknowledgements
Andy Brydon, Sarah Boulter, Nataliia Groma, Nina Laguta, Martin Livesey, Laura Nathan, Iryna Oliinyk, Nataliia Oliinyk, Anstasiia Ptashyts, Anton Saenko, Amanda Sutton, Kate Wyatt
Exhibition Curator: Olha Shyshlova
Assistant Curator: Oksana Chornobrova
Artem Oliinyk is a participant in the PinchukArtCentre project Workshop of Opportunities. This is an educational initiative by the PinchukArtCentre that opens up a space for artists with mental disabilities aged 14 and older to create and develop their talents.
The program began in 2016 and has since grown into a community where everyone can find their voice and receive support in their artistic journey.
In the Workshop of Opportunities, neurodivergent artists work side by side with contemporary artists in a friendly atmosphere, learning from one another. For us, it is essential that there are no barriers in art — that everyone can freely express themselves and feel their own value. The Workshop of Opportunities helps build an environment where neurodiversity, trust, respect, and equality are not just words but a daily practice.