Ukraine to Belfast

2026

Ukraine To Belfast

Bbeyond and Imagine Belfast Presents: Volodymyr Topiy & Mariya Hoyin

This event will include a Performance art workshop (10am - 12 noon), followed by solo performance (12-1.30pm) and a  group performance of workshop members (2-3.00pm)

Join Bbeyond for a profound exploration of performance art featuring acclaimed artists Volodymyr Topiy and Mariya Hoyin. This event includes an immersive workshop and a live performance centered on the devastating human and ecological realities of the invasion of Ukraine.
Drawing from their recent work at the Czeslaw Milosz estate, the artists utilize the elemental forces of air, water, and earth to process the collective trauma of war. Their performance addresses the destruction of the Kakhovska Dam, the poisoning of the land, and the global ripples of famine and ecological collapse.
Experience art as a catalyst for consciousness and reflection. Witness a visceral response to the disruption of our shared ecosystem and the resilience of the human spirit.

Ukraine to Belfast begins with a performance art workshop with Ukrainian artists Volodmyr Topiy and Mariya Hoyin followed by a live group performance held in the beautiful grounds of the Blackmountain Shared Space overlooking Belfast.
No previous experience is required to attend the workshop.

The Workshop
Start time: 10:00 am
End time: 12:00pm

Participants will have the rare opportunity to engage directly with Volodymyr and Mariya. The workshop will explore the practice of using live performance to raise consciousness and process complex socio-political themes through the body and the environment. Please wear comfortable clothes for this event.

Performance - Topiy and Hoyin
Start time: 12:00 pm
End time: 1:30 pm

The Live Group Performance
Start time: 2:00 pm
End time: 3.00pm
This is an open live group performance and all are welcome to join in. 
Participants may bring materials with them for the event but was ask that everyone leaves the space as they found it with no trace of our presence.
During the group performance please be respectful of others peoples materials and boundaries.
The live performance event will be documented and a photographer will be present.

About the artists:
This collaboration stems from the artists’ recent work on the border of Lithuania and Poland, created under the shadow of the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Their practice serves as a haunting witness to the 460+ days of conflict, the loss of thousands of lives, and the historical echoes of systemic hardship.
Recent performance specifically addresses the catastrophic destruction of the Kakhovska HPP. By integrating news footage of burials and the environmental fallout of modern chemical warfare, Topiy and Hoyin highlight a "global disruption." They explore how the flooding of wheat fields and the contamination of the Black Sea ecosystem lead directly to international impoverishment and famine, particularly in African nations.
The artists ground their work in the fundamental elements: air, water, and earth. Through these mediums, they examine how the destruction of our environment is, inherently, the destruction of ourselves. The performance is not merely a political statement, but an elemental inquiry into what it means to be human when the land and water that sustain us are under siege.


Poster image credit: Rachel McManus, Culture Night, Letterkenny, 2023