Artistic practice and curatorial thinking go hand in hand for Yulia Ani and Julia Liko. As artists and a creative duo, they not only develop their own artistic positions but also create spaces for exchange, new perspectives, and dialogue across generations. In this conversation, they speak about curating the New Perspectives section, sharing a studio in Berlin, and the ideas that continue to shape their future projects.
What attracted you to the opportunity to curate the “New Perspectives” section for this group exhibition?
As a creative duo, we regularly curate and organise exhibitions. It is a form of work that we genuinely enjoy. Although we are both independent artists with different artistic approaches, we often share a very similar understanding of what we find compelling and powerful.
That is why we enjoy visiting exhibitions and art fairs, but also selecting artistic positions ourselves, placing them in dialogue with one another, and responding to a specific space.
We found the invitation to curate the “New Perspectives” section at the New & Abstract Gallery particularly exciting because it offers artists the opportunity to present their work free of charge in a high-quality gallery in Berlin. Especially for many artists, this is a valuable opportunity.
What criteria did you use when selecting the artists for this section?
One of the central ideas of our duo is to bring together young, emerging artists with more established positions. We are interested in the exchange between different generations, working methods, and artistic languages.
In the selection process, it was also important to us that the works connected conceptually with the theme of the project: transitions between nature and culture, object and perception, permanence and transformation. We selected artists who work consciously with material, form, and meaning. We were particularly interested in how material can carry memory, energy, or traces of change.
It was equally important to us that each work possesses its own distinct visual language, while at the same time creating an engaging dialogue between the individual positions. All selected artists live and work in Berlin.
How does your own artistic practice influence your curatorial decisions?
Our own artistic practice makes us more attentive to processes, materials, and formal decisions. From personal experience, we know how much thought, uncertainty, and intuition are involved in the making of an artwork. This understanding also informs our curatorial work.
At the same time, we know that one’s own artistic language can sometimes limit one’s perspective. It is easy to remain within familiar themes, forms, or aesthetic preferences. That is precisely why curating is so important to us: it broadens our perspective and gives us the opportunity to engage with other positions, themes, and ways of thinking.
For us, curating is therefore an extension of our own practice. It sharpens our visual thinking, raises new questions, and in this sense aligns perfectly with the title of the section: “New Perspectives”.
You share a studio at the 3CA site — how did that come about, and what does this shared workspace mean to you?
It developed quite naturally. Before that, we were both working from home studios, but had already been looking for a shared space for some time. We had also been thinking about creating a place where we could show work, experiment with ideas, and realise smaller projects.
Then we found a studio at the 3CA site. For us, it is a very exciting artistic environment, as more than 40 artists from different disciplines work there. The site also offers large exhibition spaces and a great deal of potential for new projects. It is also important to us that the space is located in our district, Steglitz-Zehlendorf.
For us, this shared space is more than just a studio. It is a place for exchange, mutual support, and collective development of ideas.
What’s next for you — are there any upcoming projects, exhibitions, or new directions you’re particularly excited about?
As always, we have many plans and ideas. The question of time, space, and resources naturally remains open. We often joke that we could probably build a really strong gallery in Berlin ourselves. But for now, that remains a dream.
This year, we are planning several larger projects, ranging from solo exhibitions to group exhibitions. The concepts are already there — what is still missing, above all, is the right space. And as anyone in Berlin knows, finding one is almost a quest in itself. So: wish us luck — or even better, send us your recommendations if you know of a good space.
In addition, we are currently working on a larger organisational project. We cannot share anything specific about it just yet, as it is still under wraps. Anyone who would like to find out more can follow us on our shared Instagram account.