Polina Kuznetsova is a Belarusian textile artist and AR-Alumna who fled Belarus in 2022 and got an Artists at Risk (AR) residency at @vartsilaresidency in Northern Karelia. Polina was interviewed for the newspaper @karjalainenfi recently.
For a long time Polina had been vocal in her opposition against the government. After the war in Ukraine started, the Belarusian government tightened the grasp on its citizens. “Silence would have felt like betrayal”, she says. When her activism got the attention of governmental actors, she decided to take a step back from it and escape the dictatorship in Belarus with one suitcase and her two children. Polina sought help from Artists at Risk (AR) and got a residency at @vartsilaresidency in Northern Karelia.
By profession, Polina is a visual artist but she thinks of herself as a weaver, she tells in the interview. Värtsilä turned out to be the perfect place to continue her practice. After she found peace and a new beginning for her and her children in Northern Karelia, she decided to stay in Värtsilä even after the residency.
Polina says in the interview that she hopes to continue her life in Värtsilä for now. The human rights situation remains critical in Belarus: persecution for participation in protests and dissent continues; there is systemic repression of activists, journalists, and human rights defenders, and the number of political prisoners remains exceptionally high. Because of this, she cannot return to Belarus.
Thank you Karjalainen and Heli Innala for interviewing Polina!
