During a residency at ZARYA Center for Contemporary Art in Vladivostok, Russia, Verena Issel observed the disappearance of ­numerous Soviet-era murals, reliefs, and mosaics that once adorned buildings in the city. Symbols of outdated ideology, these artworks are either covered with concrete, chipped off walls, or replaced by new images, often from commercial advertising contexts. For many Russians, especially in Vladivostok, the ­Soviet-era murals symbolize a dreadful time, evoking memories of harsh experiences such as labor camps, repression, and ­deprivation.

Attempting to consider these murals as artworks detached from propaganda and politics raises intriguing questions: To what extent is art ever detached from political interests? Is it “allowed” to appreciate such art? What about the autonomy of art today? Wasn’t abstract expressionism also entirely funded as a propaganda tool by the USA, and how do we perceive it nowadays? Is art merely a trend that can be re­interpreted, forgotten, or destroyed based on the spirit of the times?

For her exhibition Lob des ­Lernens at the Oel-Früh ­Gallery, borrowing the title from Bertolt Brecht’s worker poem of the same name, Verena Issel molded plaster parts from Soviet wall reliefs in Vladivostok. She combined these with mosaic-like elements crafted from Chinese foam rubber, a very contemporary and short-lived material. A Soviet mural is abstractly recreated and inserted into a diorama-like glass case, resembling a plastic mammoth from a bygone era, now preserved behind glass. Or is it more of a storefront display for a luxury boutique? Is everything now just decoration and shopping? ­However, from the front, the installation appears to be bricked up again, this time with cleaning sponges. New times are coming, and humans need new images.

The artist is currently ­grappling with a significant internal ­struggle, contemplating whether to accept a well-funded fellowship from a privately funded ­foundation with strong neoliberal connotations, despite financial concerns. Where does freedom begin, and where does it end?

☐ Frank Breker, 2018