Connections Taking Flight: Meet the 2025 ArtsLink International Fellows and Hosts

Our 2025 ArtsLink International Fellows are completing their online residencies and preparing for in-person collaborations this fall. Five accomplished artists from Georgia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Ukraine have been working closely with their US host organizations to develop projects for their upcoming residencies.

Over the past weeks, Fellows have built strong working relationships with their hosts, refined their proposals, and skecthed project timelines. The virtual preparation phase has allowed them to establish the basis for fruitful collaborations before arriving in the United States.

Starting in October, each artist will spend five weeks at their host organization across the continental US. These residencies will focus on practice development, cultural exchange, and collaborative projects that connect international and American artistic communities.

The program moves from digital planning to hands-on creation this fall.

Olha Filonchuk and host Vitaly Chernetsky at the University of Kansas.

Olha is a multidisciplinary artist, theater set and costume designer, and art teacher from Ukraine. Her current practice focuses on visual, multidisciplinary art, working with refugee communities to explore topics of forced migration, issues of national and cultural identity, and human-nature relationships using documentary data and oral history in installations, artbooks, and assemblages.

Originally from Kyiv, Olha temporarily moved to Thuringen, Germany, in 2022 after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Her artistic evolution from theater designer to multidisciplinary artist addressing displacement reflects her personal journey while creating meaningful work that gives voice to refugee experiences and preserves cultural narratives through contemporary art practices.

Olha’s ArtsLink International Fellowship this year is hosted by the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures at the University of Kansas, a program renowned for its interdisciplinary approach to Slavic and Eastern European cultures, literature, and arts.

The Fellowship is stewarded by Vitaly Chernetsky, Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures at the University of Kansas. A native of Odesa, Ukraine, Vitaly brings a deep understanding of Ukrainian culture and the broader East European region to his work. His research explores modern and contemporary cultures of Ukraine and Central and Eastern Europe through literature, film, and popular culture in comparative and interdisciplinary contexts.
Beyond academia, Vitaly is passionate about bridging cultures through translation, having translated two novels and a poetry collection by Yuri Andrukhovych and a comprehensive poetry volume by Ostap Slyvynsky from Ukrainian into English. His prizewinning book “Mapping Postcommunist Cultures: Russia and Ukraine in the Context of Globalization” demonstrates his commitment to understanding cultural transformations in the region. As the 2024 President of the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES), he actively fosters international scholarly dialogue about the region Olha calls home.

Diana Rakhmanova and her host Nova Benway, Triangle Arts Association in NYC.

Diana is a multidisciplinary artist, curator, art manager, researcher, and journalist from Tajikistan. The founder of PF Cultural Center “Kuduk” in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, she curates educational projects on eco-art, data-art and art management in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. She creates installations, discussions and cooking-together happenings considering food as an art language of cultural exchange.

Diana has explored complex historical narratives through experimental theater: in 2021 she wrote and directed “Accord” (en. “Chord”) which tells the story of the civil war in Tajikistan and its impact on art and culture. Her work was exhibited in Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, and USA and included as part of the DAVRA collective at Documenta fifteen. She participated in art residencies in Mexico, Costa Rica, and Colombia.

Diana’s ArtsLink International Fellowship this year is hosted by Triangle Arts Association, an artist residency founded in NYC in 1982. Through year-round residencies for local and international artists and curators, Triangle builds an enduring global network of arts professionals.

The Fellowship is stewarded by Nova Benway, Executive Director of Triangle Arts Association. Nova previously served as a curator at The Drawing Center in New York City. She co-directed Open Sessions, a two-year residency/exhibition hybrid program organized with local, national, and international artists, supporting drawing practices in relation to film, architecture, sculpture, music, and other interdisciplinary approaches. At Triangle, Nova oversees artist studios hosting local and international artists, as well as public programs that foster critical dialogue and cross-cultural exchange within the global arts community.

Diana Berg and her host John D. Spiak, at Grand Central Art Center in California.

Diana is an artist, curator, and cultural manager from Ukraine. From Donetsk to Mariupol to Kyiv, she has transformed her practice from activist to artist amidst war and displacement. Founder of Mariupol’s Platform Tu, she has been working with gender inequality and human rights issues through art, persisting in activism and cultural preservation after being displaced twice by war.

Diana’s work exploring topics of memory and war has gained national and international recognition. At documenta fifteen, she coordinated the 3-day Ukrainian program. She is currently developing a project on the environmental crises in the east of Ukraine affected by Russian ecocide, committed to leveraging art for social justice and environmental awareness.

Diana’s ArtsLink International Fellowship this year is hosted by Grand Central Art Center, established in 1994 as a collaboration between the City of Santa Ana and Cal State Fullerton’s College of the Arts. The center is dedicated to the exploration of contemporary art and visual culture through socially engaged collaborations among artists, students, and the community.

The Fellowship is led by John D. Spiak, Director and Chief Curator at Grand Central Art Center. His curatorial emphasis is on contemporary art and society, with a focus on works in socially engaged practices and video. Previously serving as curator at Arizona State University’s ASU Art Museum, John brings extensive experience in contemporary art curation and community engagement to his role at GCAC.

Sabina Fattakh and them host M. Carmen Lane at ATNSC in Cleveland

Sabina navigates her creative journey through a decolonial and feminist lens, challenging hegemonic narratives while celebrating her cultural heritage. Her DJ sets serve as a form of cultural resistance, blending traditional Kazakh melodies with contemporary beats, reclaiming spaces and narratives often silenced by colonial histories. Embracing her identity as a Qumalaqshi, she incorporates traditional nomadic divination practices into her performances, grounding her art in ancestral knowledge. Through her work, Sabina advocates for decolonization and inclusivity, working towards a world where diverse voices are heard and valued.

As an ArtsLink Fellow 2025, Sabina will be hosted by ATNSC: Center for Healing & Creative Leadership in the historic Buckeye-Shaker neighborhood of Cleveland, OH.
ATNSC is a socially engaged, multidisciplinary and artist-led residency, retreat, research and exhibition space, focusing on interdisciplinary, socially-engaged programs rooted in fostering relationships, lifelong learning and the significance of the environment.

M. Carmen Lane, a two-spirit African-American and Haudenosaunee (Mohawk/Tuscarora) artist, writer and facilitator, founder and director of ATNSC. Carmen’s work explores ancestry, legacy, and spirituality, making this an ideal partnership for exploring cross-cultural artistic practices and community healing through creative expression.

Maka Chkhaidze and her host Silva Laukkanen at Art Spark Texas

Originaly from Georgia and with a background in theater, Maka’s primary interest lies in researching and using performing art as a tool in building relations between disconnected, underrepresented groups of society. In 2022, Maka founded a non-profit organization in Tbilisi InForm – Platform for Inclusive Minds (@inform_pim), that promotes disability-inclusive art practices.
Maka’s innovative approach to cultural management combines her theatrical training with curatorial expertise, creating bridges between diverse social groups through the transformative power of performance. Her work focuses on amplifying voices that are often excluded from mainstream cultural discourse, using art as a catalyst for social change and community building.

As an ArtsLink Fellow 2025, Maka is hosted by Art Spark Texas in Austin, a pioneering organization that challenges perceptions of disability through the arts. Art Spark Texas empowers artists of all abilities and ages through programs in visual art, dance, performance, and storytelling.

Her host, Silva Laukkanen, is Director of Integrated Dance at Art Spark Texas. With over 20 years of experience in inclusive performance and dance education, Silva has led nationally recognized programs that connect dancers of all abilities through technique, improvisation, and narrative. She is also a founding member of Body Shift, an integrated dance collective in Austin, and is widely respected for her work in access-focused choreography and disability justice in the arts.

We are grateful to the ArtsLink Fellow Monika Požek (@meetsharedance,) who met and collaborated with Art Spark Texas during her Fellowship in 2022, for helping us connect Maka and Silva. We love it when such deep and lasting ties strengthen our artists and partners!

July 2025

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