Odesa masterpieces between Berlin and Heidelberg: art in exile

Ihor Poronyk, director of the Odesa Museum of Western and Oriental Art, took a unique collection to Europe and was fined. In an interview with Intent, he explained why 76 works are staying in Germany for another year. But the main intrigue of the conversation is why Caravaggio was taken to the artist's homeland and when the museum's restoration will begin?

Ihor, let's talk about the museum's foreign projects after the outbreak of a full-scale war. Why did Germany become the main focus?

An exhibition from Odesa at the Kurpfalz Museum. PHOTO: Kateryna Kiper

When the full-scale Russian invasion began, we were faced with the question of how to save the museum collection. The most reliable solution was to temporarily move part of the collection abroad. This is not only about security. It was also about the opportunity to show Ukrainian art to the world.

The first country to go was not Germany, but Lithuania. At the very beginning of the war, we handed over to the National Art Museum of Lithuania paintings by Frans Hals, The Evangelist Luke and The Evangelist Matthew. Our Lithuanian colleagues not only provided storage, but also organized an exhibition, supplemented it with modern technologies, and gave these works a new context.

Berlin appeared in this story almost by accident, due to family circumstances. At the beginning of the war, my daughter Tetiana was eight months pregnant. Soon after, my grandson Lev was born. I took a leave of absence at my own expense and went to help out, changing diapers and holding the baby. But once in Berlin, it would have been strange not to use this opportunity professionally.

Through Johannes Nathan, the president of the Center for Support of Ukrainian Art, and Professor Wolfgang Eichwelde, a German historian, I met Dr. Ralf Gleiss, the director of the Old National Gallery. At first, it was a normal conversation between colleagues. And then we started talking about the war and how to save the museum.

I told him that we had evacuated the most valuable things to the West of Ukraine. It was safer there than in Odesa, but the conditions were not suitable for long-term storage. When it turned out that two containers (fortunately, not containing paintings) had already been infected with fungus, Ralf Gleiss simply said: "Why not transport them to Berlin?" I replied: "Warum nicht?" and everything started to take off.

The project was supported by the German Federal Ministry for Culture and Media, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, and the Ernst von Siemens Foundation for the Arts. It was held under the patronage of German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Our fellow Ukrainians Kateryna Kiper, Natalia Donchyk, Oleksandra Baranovska, and Oleksandra Sakorska also played a huge role . They found themselves in Germany by force, but they did not lose touch with Odesa and helped as much as they could.

Paradoxically, the most difficult thing was not to reach an agreement with German partners, but to obtain permits at home. Ordinary employees of the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine helped as much as they could, but the necessary orders were not signed by the management for more than three months. In wartime, this is an eternity. It's good that now the Ministry has a new team with whom there is a dialog and support.

How was the exhibition in Berlin organized?

The exhibition at the Berlin Art Gallery (Gemäldegalerie). PHOTO: OMZSM

Our German colleagues studied the list of our masterpieces - mostly paintings of the XVI-XIX centuries. Since the Old National Gallery specializes in nineteenth-century art, the project was handed over to colleagues from the Berlin Art Gallery (Gemäldegalerie), where this era is represented much more widely.

We brought 76 works, and 60 of them were selected for the exhibition. And we created a mix: our paintings were combined with works from the Berlin collection by the same authors or art schools. At my suggestion, the works from the Odesa and Berlin museums were placed side by side, on the same level, in a common interior space. It was an equal dialog, emphasizing their artistic equivalence.

The preparation of the exhibition was a great joint work of scholars and restorers of both museums. Special thanks to curator Sabina Late for her professionalism and sensitivity in working on the project.

There is one more detail that is very revealing. Due to security requirements, our paintings were evacuated from Ukraine without frames. And our German partners didn't just place the paintings in the halls - they made new frames for them, in fact, they "put on" the paintings anew. These frames are planned to be transferred to our museum.

How did the project get to Heidelberg?

The idea to continue the project at the Kurpfalz Museum in Heidelberg belongs to the director of the Gemäldegalerie, Dagmar Hirschfelde, who made a lot of effort to make this initiative happen.

Of course, it was not without difficulties: there were issues with financing and customs procedures. Despite the fact that in May 2025 Odesa and Heidelberg officially became partner cities, the project did not receive support from the Odesa City Hall.

German colleagues reported that the exhibition was the largest cultural project in the history of the twinning. It has been a great success: as of early March, more than 12 thousand people have visited it, which is a really impressive figure for Heidelberg. I have reason to believe that this story even influenced the emergence of Odesa Street in the city to some extent.

And just the other day I received an invitation from the mayor of Heidelberg to come to the Odesa Days, which will take place on March 15 on the occasion of the exhibition's closing.

But the cooperation did not end there?

"St. Luke" and "St. Matthew" from Hals's cycle "The Evangelists". PHOTO: OMZSM

Yes, there was another amazing incident. When I talked to the director of the Gemäldegalerie, Ms. Dagmar, and presented her with our catalog, she saw a reproduction of Frans Hals's paintings. It turned out that they were just preparing a large-scale project with England and the Netherlands. The exhibition had already been held in London, was on display in Amsterdam, and was to continue in Berlin.

Ms. Dagmar asked: "Can you give us your 'evangelists'? We will include them in the exhibition." I replied that the paintings are now in Vilnius. Lithuania met me halfway, sacrificed its success, and transferred the paintings to Berlin on time. As a result, Ukraine became the fourth country in this large-scale international art project.

What will happen to the paintings next, as the exhibition "Masterpieces from Odesa. European Painting of the XVI-XIX Centuries" in Heidelberg is coming to an end?

According to the contract, the works have to return from Berlin by May 31 this year. But it is risky to bring them to Ukraine now, and it is frankly ridiculous to return them to Odesa.

Fortunately, we found a legal way out: Article 116 of the Customs Code of Ukraine allows for the extension of the period of stay of cultural property abroad for another year in special cases. However, this means additional funding, a new approval procedure and a package of documents. I am currently working on this - there are preliminary agreements with the German side, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, and the customs.

By the way, Berlin's storage facilities are a separate story. Modern climate control, a multi-level security system - to be honest, sometimes it looks better than many of our exhibition halls.

But when works are just lying around as dead weight, it's wrong. Art must live. Now I am in correspondence with the Frans Hals Museum in Harlem about the possibility of exhibiting our "evangelists". At the same time, negotiations with the Italian side are ongoing: after the Lithuanian route is completed, we plan to show a Caravaggio painting and several other paintings from our collection in Italy.

Did you have any difficulties with Ukrainian customs when moving your works?

The exhibition from Odesa at the Kurpfalz Museum. PHOTO: Kateryna Kiper

Yes, there were difficulties. When the question of transporting the works from Berlin to Heidelberg arose, formal obstacles suddenly arose. The customs authorities insisted that the works should first be returned to Ukraine and then a new contract should be signed. The process dragged on, overgrown with bureaucratic nuances.

I also made a mistake. The broker let me down with the documents, and I didn't follow up on time. As a result, customs issued me a fine of 40 thousand hryvnias. And it didn't matter to the system whether I was exporting a batch of my own socks or saving Ukrainian cultural heritage from shelling.

I appealed to various authorities and tried to explain the situation, but it was not easy to convince Ukrainian officials. Then we engaged the German side. Official letters were sent to the Ukrainian customs office from the host museums, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, and the German Federal Ministry of Culture and Media. Eventually, the permit was signed.

Let's talk about The Kiss of Judah. I read that in Italy there is no official attribution confirming Caravaggio's authorship. Is this true?

A fragment of the restored painting The Kiss of Judas. PHOTO: OMZSM

Today, there are indeed different points of view. Some believe that this is an author's repetition of Caravaggio, while others believe that it is a copy made by Giovanni di Attila.

The basis for the second version is a receipt from the Mattei family, which states that the artist received 12 scudos for a copy of The Arrest of Christ. I specifically asked my Italian colleagues to make a literal translation of this document. The text contains neither dimensions nor a description of the composition - the wording is general. Dozens of paintings on this theme, made by different authors and in different formats, can be "tied up" under it.

Moreover, 12 scudos is a very modest amount. If we conditionally translate it into modern money, we are talking about several hundred euros. For comparison, works of Caravaggio's level cost 400-500 scudos. And one more significant point: apart from this receipt, virtually nothing is known about Giovanni di Attila. Not a single attributed, confirmed work.

The painting "The Kiss of Judas" before the restoration. PHOTO: OMZSM

Now about the restoration. When I was appointed acting director of the museum in 2015, I learned that the painting was in a critical condition: without a stretcher, with temporary glues, without even the necessary conservation measures. At the same time, there was a court ban on the restoration, as the painting was being used as material evidence and stored at the National Research and Restoration Center.

The museum's researchers, the chairman of the supervisory board, friends of the museum, Italian experts, journalists, and art historians worked to change the situation. On April 20, 2018, the court finally granted permission for the restoration. It lasted three years.

If we hadn't insisted then, the work would have started only now - the trial ended only in January this year. During this time, the condition of the painting could have deteriorated significantly. It would have taken another three years to restore it. And under martial law, perhaps even longer.

During the restoration, with the assistance of the museum's friend, former Italian Ambassador to Ukraine Davide La Cecilia, experts on Caravaggio's work were invited to Kyiv. Among them were Natalia Chechykova, a doctor of art history, and restorer Giulia Gia, who worked with about twenty of the master's works and participated in large-scale research on his heritage. When they saw our painting, they said directly: "Yes, this is Caravaggio".

Moreover, in March 2025, a large exhibition dedicated to Caravaggio was held in Rome, and the Italian side asked us to provide the painting "The Kiss of Judas". That is, a priori, it is considered to be a work by Caravaggio. At the time, we were unable to transfer the painting because it was still in the legal process.

Today, there are two main positions: either it is the work of Giovanni di Attila, or the author's repetition of Caravaggio. And then another question arises-which version was the first: the Odesa or Dublin one? There are about 28 known copies of this composition, but a serious scientific discussion is going on around our canvas and the painting from Dublin.

At the same time, the Dublin side practically does not allow researchers to work with the work. Our restoration center requested access and was denied. Italian experts also tried to get the opportunity to research, to no avail.

Our position today is formulated cautiously: "attributed to Caravaggio". Although we have enough reasons to consider the work an original.

First, no one disputes the dating to the seventeenth century. Microchemical studies have confirmed that the pigments and painting techniques are consistent with the Caravaggio tradition.

Second, the Odesa and Dublin versions differ from each other. This is atypical for a copy: usually, a copy is sought to be reproduced as accurately as possible. X-rays have shown that the artist changed compositional decisions in the process of working - this is a creative search, not mechanical repetition. It was natural for Caravaggio: there are several versions of The Lute Player, Medusa, and Dinner at Emmaus. The master often returned to his own successful compositions.

And finally, Caravaggio did not have a school in the classical sense of the word-he did not have a systematic circle of students. Giovanni di Attila's name does not appear among the Caravaggists.

That is why we are interested in the painting undergoing a full international examination in Italy. If it receives the "final piece of paper," in the words of Professor Preobrazhensky, then the matter will be closed.

"The Kiss of Judah is now on display in Kyiv. Is it realistic for Odesa?

Ihor Poronyk at the presentation of the painting "The Kiss of Judas" in St. Sophia of Kyiv. PHOTO: OMZSM

"At first, I was frankly against showing the painting in Kyiv, given the intensified shelling of the capital. Back in May, we negotiated with the Lithuanian side to take the painting abroad immediately after the court decision. Lithuania was ready to accept it.

However, this plan did not materialize. The National Restoration Center insisted on presenting the work in Kyiv as the result of many years of restoration. And I have to be honest: the restorers did a tremendous job. They have truly golden hands. Their desire to show the result of complex and long work is natural and professionally justified. I understand both their position and the position of the Ministry of Culture, which supported this idea.

Restoration of the painting "The Kiss of Judas". PHOTO: OMZSM

In the end, I agreed to the Kyiv show. Especially since the venue was chosen not the Khanenko Museum, where the risks are objectively higher, but the National Conservation Area "St. Sophia of Kyiv". This place is considered relatively safe: there have been no arrivals there during the war, and there are high-security facilities nearby. Last but not least, it is symbolic to show the work in the heart of the country.

As for the painting's return to Odesa now. I understand the emotions of Odessans. Why did Kyiv get the "right of the first wedding night" and not Odesa, which was presented with the painting back in 1901?

I understand this dissatisfaction - especially on the part of those who are not immersed in the legal, technical, financial and security nuances. Transportation of such a work requires specialized transport, professional security, insurance, and compliance with international safety standards. This is a complicated and very expensive procedure, especially in times of war.

I have a question about the restoration of the museum building. Do I understand correctly that the work will begin after the war?

No, we are not talking about "after the war". A lot of preparatory work was done even earlier. We managed to develop and fully approve the restoration project and pass all the necessary examinations. That is why the object was included in the state program "Great Restoration". The work began in January 2022.

And then the war broke out. The contractors managed to complete part of the work in the basement and in the outbuilding. I deliberately sent them there so as not to interfere with the main historic building until the situation was fully understood. Then the restoration was frozen for almost a year. Later, it was resumed, but problems began again, either with financing or with organizational decisions, and the process stopped again.

After that, serious work was done at the city, regional, and ministry levels. As a result, there was an initiative from Italy to finance the restoration of four cultural heritage sites, including our museum. The negotiations took a long time, but now they are actually in the home stretch. Funding is planned, and the work should continue regardless of whether the war continues or not.

The initial project was developed by Ecobud. The Italian experts are not creating a new concept, they are adjusting an existing one, taking into account changes in the regulatory framework, construction requirements, and the cost of materials. The work is to be commissioned by the Capital Construction Department of the Odesa Regional State Administration. The contractor is likely to be changed, as the previous one did not perform well. But the general designer is likely to remain the same.

How do you see the museum ten years after the end of the war?

I hope that after the restoration, the museum will meet modern standards, especially in terms of preserving and exhibiting our priceless collection.

I remember visiting a museum in Berlin where photographs are kept in the collections. They explained to me: "Here we have color photographs, and here we have black and white ones. Because color requires a temperature of 21 degrees, and black and white requires 20 degrees. The difference is only one degree, but it's crucial for preservation."

One degree. And this is not a formality, but a matter of the work's durability.

We are talking about full-fledged climate control, professional museum lighting, modern ventilation and heating systems. These are the basic things without which it is impossible to talk about a serious museum institution of the 21st century.

I really hope that our museum will be brought up to these standards. Because now in summer the temperature in the halls can reach +33, and in winter it can drop to +13. And I'm not even touching on the other problems that remain out of the public eye.

Do you, as a director, have your own "personal utopia"? An exhibit that you would like to have in your collection, realizing that it is almost impossible?

Yes, it is indeed a utopia. But it would be great if our museum owned the entire cycle of The Evangelists by Frans Hals. We already have Luke and Matthew in our collection. Two more images of the Evangelists from this series are in Moscow (St. Mark) and in California at the Paul Getty Museum (St. John).

Hals is known primarily as a brilliant portraitist, and the Evangelists series is a rare example of his treatment of a religious theme. It would be all the more interesting to collect all four paintings in one space, especially in our museum. This would allow us to see the artist's idea holistically.

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