Staging an exhibition of Russian contemporary art under the name Good News! while the world enters into the deepest recession since the 1930s does not seem to be a very obvious choice. In the years before the crisis, the market for contemporary art had gone through a phase of unprecedented growth. Art had become a commodity, and when turbulences hit the financial markets, the contemporary art market was affected as well.

What does this mean for contemporary art itself? Artistic production does not take place in a vacuum, but in a social, cultural, political, and economical context. However, good artists and good art do emerge in the most adverse conditions. The artists of the early 20^th century Russian avant-garde, which gave birth to some of the most innovative and revolutionary movements in art history, worked in a period of extreme economic hardship. What mattered was that they were inspired by the possibility of creating something fundamentally new.

In this sense, we are experiencing an exciting moment for the art world. In recent years, many have criticized the commercialisation of contemporary art. Artistic innovation, or the lack of it, seemed to be market-driven. The current crisis is therefore a chance to move away from the mass produced and highly commercialized contemporary art that has dominated the art market, and to make space for innovation and creativity.

Good News! features works by established Russian and Ukrainian artists from a generation that was formed in the late 1980s and 1990s alongside works by emerging Russian artists. It is a manifestation of the vibrant and diverse contemporary art scene in the countries of the ex-USSR, and demonstrates that there is great potential for the future. This is definitely good news, and Orel Art UK is proud to bring it to London.