Masha Kovtun

She works in the medium of installation consisting of painting, video and performance with an emphasis on the mutual understanding of nostalgia with melancholy and the search for one’s own identity, determined by the specificity of the situation of an immigrant living in Prague for a long time. As part of her doctoral studies, she explores the representation of Europe in contemporary artistic discourse, focusing on themes of migration, identity, and political non-citizenship. She examines artistic practices that are integral to both historical and contemporary social processes redefining political communities. She views art as a form of citizenship manifestation, enabling the crossing of boundaries between the included and the excluded. From this perspective, she investigates contemporary processes related to the integration of migrants—one of today’s key groups of non-citizens—into political communities.

Masha Kovtun (b. 1993, Dnipro in Ukraine) is currently pursuing her doctoral studies at the Faculty of Fine Arts at Brno University. She studied at PGASA (2011-2014), the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague (2019-2024)and also spent a study internship at the Angewandte in Vienna (Henning Bohl painting studio). She lives and works in Prague. Her work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions at stone projects (2024); Harkawik, New York, USA (2024); 427 Gallery, Riga, LV (2023).