white but not quite: displaced pavilion
White but Not Quite: Displaced Pavilion, presented at the PERFORMATICA event during the Venice Biennale, offers a layered critique of identity, displacement, and representation through a feminist and intersectional lens. Drawing from the Biennale’s tradition of national pavilions, Yelena´s work interrogates the conditional acceptance of Eastern European migrants in Western societies, while simultaneously exploring the complexities of racial and ethnic identity. Wearing a green costume and mask and carrying a loaf of white bread encased in plastic, Yelena reimagines the migrant experience as both hyper-visible and deliberately obscured, reflecting the precariousness of existing between worlds. The green costume, beyond its initial alien-like appearance, functions metaphorically as a green screen, a medium through which any identity can be projected or erased. This creative choice symbolizes the malleability and erasure of ethnic and racial identities within dominant narratives. By using green—a neutral and malleable backdrop—Yelena emphasizes how identities, particularly those of migrants and displaced individuals, are often reduced to whatever suits the societal or political agenda of the moment. Her own identity as a Ukrainian, marked as “white but not quite,” becomes a canvas onto which others paste assumptions, prejudices, and stereotypes, rendering her both everywhere and nowhere in terms of belonging. The plastic-wrapped loaf of white bread adds another layer of meaning, symbolizing both the commodification of identity and the constraints placed on those who must conform to societal expectations. By wrapping the bread, she protects it from the pigeons and the punitive gaze of authority, mirroring how migrants must shield their true selves to avoid scrutiny or rejection. Through this performance, Yelena critiques the rigid frameworks of national and racial identity, while inviting audiences to question their own perceptions. Her use of green as a stand-in for universal projection aligns with feminist and postcolonial theories, emphasizing how identity is constructed, deconstructed, and imposed by external forces. White but Not Quite: Displaced Pavilion thus becomes a powerful meditation on identity, displacement, and the politics of visibility.
Located at Chisa di San Nicola da Tolentino in Venice, Italy
Documented by Hinco Woerdman, Craphone Liu and Hector Canonge
