Nadiya Svirsky

A Defunct Structure Is A Moving Anchor

A painting of the abandoned and defunct Soviet-era restaurant called Маяк (Mayak/The Lighthouse) in my hometown of Dnipro, Ukraine.

“There are buildings and sites which act as landmarks within the realm of memory. For myself, this building has been one of these landmarks, presenting itself in my consciousness long before I was aware of its architectural function or origin. I have always known it in its defunct state; a building resembling an abandoned fortress or spaceship looking over the tall edge of the embankment next to the Dnipro river, which flows through the city. Over time, the building experiences erosion, and so does my memory of it. I cling to the memory of it, the iconic outline becoming more and more prominent in my recollection, the banal details falling away, image loss replaced with related recollections of bridge fragments and electric wires. ”