Distant Pairs at Beyond Greener Grass

Commissioning new collaborations between artists in disparate locations with restricted travel possibilities is the premise behind the Distant Pairs Series; a program that celebrates the potential of the collaborative process and the value of transnational partnerships, even amidst severely constrained conditions.

Whilst this sounds like an immediate response to the current geo-political crisis, it was initiated back in 2020 by NYC based Issue Project Room in response to the suspension of in-person programming and travel restrictions during the covid pandemic.

This May, Issue have partnered with Time Based, a platform for advancing contemporary music and sound-centered practices in Ukraine on three commissioned works uniting artists based in Kyiv and New York City. Working through the simultaneity of war and multiple crises, these three pairs engage in collaborative creations that highlight physical distance – yet reveal a deeply layered interdependence.

The ArtsLink Assembly: Beyond Greener Grass at Jam Factory Art Center in Lviv will screen the new commissions and feature a live concert by Distant Pairs composer/musicians Maryana Klochko and Oleksii Podat on Saturday May 24th at 7.00pm

Maryana Klochko is a music producer, vocalist, and film composer based in Kyiv, Ukraine. In her works, she often engages with the unconscious—through lyrics and vocal parts, she seeks a balance between the real and the fictional. She perceives music as storytelling, finding visual images within compositions that come to life through sound.

Oleksii Podat from Sloviansk, Ukraine, is a distinctive voice in Ukraine’s experimental music scene, Oleksii is known for his radical approaches to sound production, blending avant-garde playfulness with raw sonic intensity. His self-proclaimed genre, melodic noise, has become a defining element of his artistic identity, pushing the boundaries of contemporary composition.

The new Distant Pairs commissions will stream through May on ISSUE’s event web pages.

Madison Greenstone & Anton Saenko: Wednesday, May 7th, 2025
Distant Pairs Live in NYC with Eden Girma, Madison Greenstone & Suzanne Thorpe: Saturday, May 10th, 2025
Eden Girma & Maryana Klochko: Wednesday, May 14th, 2025
Oleksii Podat & Suzanne Thorpe: Wednesday, May 21st, 2025

APRIL 2025

Events Ukraine

Explore next: The Assembly is Back! ArtsLink Assembly: Beyond Greener Grass in Lviv