We are grateful to the Antykvar Magazine for inviting James Butterwick to be the guest editor of the next issue of this magazine. Watch his first conversation with Anna Sherman, Editor-in-chief of “Antykvar”, where they discuss plans for the upcoming issue that will be devoted to a Ukrainian avant garde artist Oleksandr Bohomazov.

Follow the link to watch the video Part 1. The conversation is in Russian.

Follow the link to watch Part 2.

“With all protestations of false modesty placed to one side, I am going to go hyperbolic and write that it really is an enormous honour to have been invited to be guest editor of ‘Antikvar’ this month.

The Gods must have been smiling on me the first time I set eyes on the work of Bohomazov in 1988. This almost Damascene moment, bizarrely, took place in my home city at a time when we were faced by a different Russia to the one we face now and, it goes without saying, that Bohomazov is one of my favourite artists.

These introductions usually end up sounding like Oscar-winning speeches and I make no apologies for mine. At the top of the tree of thanks is Eduard Dymshyts who, aside from being a friend and esteemed colleague, introduced me to a whole host of people without whom this Bohomazov story would not have been told. Tanya Popova, Dmytro Gorbachev, Stella Benjaminova, Igor Dichenko are all names associated with this story. The story of an unknown of supreme talent who, despite a tortured life and legacy, shone through and became famous. An almost Hollywood-style epic.

Further thanks also go to Anna Sherman, the dynamic and courageous editor, who is now faced with the unenviable task of removing me and my sizeable ego from this temporary post.” — James Butterwick

Preview and order the magazine here (in Ukrainian, with foreword in English and Ukrainian).