BIRD&CARROT PRODUCTIONS PRESENTs
The Suitcase
By Kostya Benkovich
The project was inspired by the stories of Ukrainian refugees and their flight to safety. The artist, the Israeli-based sculptor Kostya Benkovich, came in touch with many dispossessed families who left Ukraine and, gradually, his experience of relieving their traumatic memories distilled into the proposed artwork.
The installation features an abandoned solitary suitcase sculpted of steel rebar. It is simultaneously the symbol of displacement and homelessness, and the reminder of the refugee's former life, now ruined by some catastrophe.
"The theme of the absence, or restriction of freedoms, and the recognition of the victims of state repression reoccur in my work. I had to left Russia myself, and have to a certain extent, become an object of my own work because the suitcase is all I now have that connects me to the past," the artist said.
The artist also refers to UNHCR global refugee account and trends report stating that for the first time on record the number of people forced to flee war, violence, human rights violations and persecution has now crossed 123 million, propelled by the war in Ukraine and other armed conflicts.
Click here to read the report
This work, emotionally charged and laden with layers of meanings, is a tribute to the plight of refugees worldwide.
The installation has the appearance of an open-air theatre, stage overlooking the street and remaining an integral part of the project. The white stage gradually directs the viewer's gaze to the object symbolising a hasty flight, and the instant when everything habitual and familiar, everything that was once held dear and significant in life, disappears without trace. A void. The stage resembles a museum plinth, standing aloof and isolated from its surroundings, cut off and disconnected from the general atmosphere of merry- making and fun, typical of a theatre festival.
This is a performance without actors; its main protagonists are the stage and the suitcase, reminding the public of the trials of refugees.
The Suitcase @ Usher Hall 2025
The Suitcase will be put on public display at the Usher Hall, the main concert venue in Edinburgh.
The Suitcase Installation @ Fragile exhibition 2024
“My suitcase is all I have remaining of my former life.”
Kostya Benkovich first heard these words in March 2022 from an unknown lady. Her heart-breaking tale of a hasty escape from Ukraine with her family, leaving everything behind except the contents of a single suitcase, deeply resonated with Kostya.
Each Suitcase is constructed from reinforced steel, reminiscent of prison bars in Russia. Kostya Benkovich said, “The theme of the absence, or restriction of freedoms, and the recognition of the victims of state repression reoccur in my work. I had to flee Russia myself, and have to a certain extent, become an object of my own work because the suitcase is all I now have that connects me to the past.”
Kostya Benkovich first heard these words in March 2022 from an unknown lady. Her heart-breaking tale of a hasty escape from Ukraine with her family, leaving everything behind except the contents of a single suitcase, deeply resonated with Kostya.
Each Suitcase is constructed from reinforced steel, reminiscent of prison bars in Russia. Kostya Benkovich said, “The theme of the absence, or restriction of freedoms, and the recognition of the victims of state repression reoccur in my work. I had to flee Russia myself, and have to a certain extent, become an object of my own work because the suitcase is all I now have that connects me to the past.”
The Suitcase @ Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2022
The Suitcase took a part in the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh this August (05 - 29 August 2022). For the installation we've partnered with the Assembly Festival - one of the largest multi-venue operators on Fringe.
The confirmed place of installation is in the heart of Edinburgh New Town on George Street, outside the iconic Assembly Rooms building.
"Thanks for the Suitcase", Mikhail Goldenberg, the head of the Jewish community in the Ukrainian city of Nikolaev, commented on the project. "The smaller it is, the more valuable are the things that it contains. And the small size makes us consider the intrinsic value of what we still have and hold dear."
The confirmed place of installation is in the heart of Edinburgh New Town on George Street, outside the iconic Assembly Rooms building.
"Thanks for the Suitcase", Mikhail Goldenberg, the head of the Jewish community in the Ukrainian city of Nikolaev, commented on the project. "The smaller it is, the more valuable are the things that it contains. And the small size makes us consider the intrinsic value of what we still have and hold dear."
Kostya Benkovich
KOSTYA BENKOVICH Kostya Benkovich is a St. Petersburg-born London/Helsinki based international activist artist whose installations are manifestos of resistance to dictatorial power and control. His installations
have been showcased in leading museums and art institutions worldwide, including The Hermitage in St. Petersburg, ANU in Tel Aviv and the Saatchi Gallery in London. His street art and site-specific actions had an impressive viral effect, empowering his audience to take a critical stance towards the existing situation, voice their opinion, and make a difference. One of such
installations, his famous steel rebar sculpture, the Scream (2018), was inspired by the eponymous Munch’s painting and was installed at the spot marking the murder of the oppositional Russian leader Boris Nemtsov. Kostya Benkovich's monumental sculpture, The Right Hand of God has been exhibited in London at Holland Park's Napoleon Garden as part of the Kensington & Chelsea Art Week, and was displayed in Edinburgh in 2023.
have been showcased in leading museums and art institutions worldwide, including The Hermitage in St. Petersburg, ANU in Tel Aviv and the Saatchi Gallery in London. His street art and site-specific actions had an impressive viral effect, empowering his audience to take a critical stance towards the existing situation, voice their opinion, and make a difference. One of such
installations, his famous steel rebar sculpture, the Scream (2018), was inspired by the eponymous Munch’s painting and was installed at the spot marking the murder of the oppositional Russian leader Boris Nemtsov. Kostya Benkovich's monumental sculpture, The Right Hand of God has been exhibited in London at Holland Park's Napoleon Garden as part of the Kensington & Chelsea Art Week, and was displayed in Edinburgh in 2023.
Other Benkovich's works
In his work Benkovich turns to instantly recognisable images and symbols, and deconstructs them through the choice of medium, colour, scale, and modular construction, thus, altering their context. The reconceptualised images would subsequently take on completely new critical, political, and desacralized connotations.