Artem Stefanov
HERE WE MEET
Vanino, 2025
The theme of seafaring is inseparable from the settlement of Vanino in the Khabarovsk region — a place that grew around a pre-revolutionary bay. During “SMENA,” the artist developed a conceptual reflection on this local heritage: the façade of a typical five-story building breaks out of its usual flatness, transforming into a structure reminiscent of a stack of containers at a cargo terminal. At the same time, the blocks are composed of maritime signal flags encoding the phrase “VOT MY I VSTRETILIS” (translated as HERE WE MEET). The mural functions as a message that interprets itself: it quite literally speaks about the moment of encountering the viewer and turns the act of reading into part of the artistic experience — something that resonates strongly in a place where ships are met and welcomed.
