VODOPARAD-2001

On the first days of the new year and new millennium an unusual exhibition, a creative undertaking, opened in Kharkov which was organized and conducted by the company "Vlada-Promtex". Both seriously and as a joke "Moydodyr" (from the children's book of the same name by Korney Chukovskiy) was presented as hero of the exhibition.

The exhibition of the year 2001 was the prologue to the general conception. The show of authors’ furniture, lighting, tiles and accessories for bathrooms is the most important task of this project. The January exposition was devoted to one of the compulsory elements of bathrooms – to a washbasin. The module was assigned to the designers, and the rest became the matter of technique and creative genius of the participants.

Some Karkov designers were delighted to take part in the metamorphoses of "the chief of washbasins and commander of bath sponges". They had long experience of working in the field of design and architecture – V. Bondarenko (Design Bureau "Art-Tec"), A. Levitin, V. Morozyuk, V. Pogorelchuk, Y. Spasov, A. Starozhilov, S. Tynynyka –"Moydodyr" there were also newcomers in the project "Moydodyr": A. Bondarenko, D. Fomenko and Y. Chigrinov (architects of Design Bureau "Art-Tec").

The exhibition proved to be rather persuasive in demonstrating reasonable, organic and constructive blending of new contours, technologies and materials with new ideas and conceptions of design art. The great stress in work of the exhibition was put to the introduction of those who can and must change the settled views of the culture of design, the art of decor, change the common way of reorganizing a dwelling, help with reconstruction, redecoration and renewal of our city flats.

An unusual show had been prepared for the citizens of Kharkov who came to the saloon of elite equipment for bathroom "Favola di oro" on the 5th of January 2001. Alongside the refined products of European factories, there appeared to be the design objects and installations as if carried from an art gallery. There were so much creativity, humor and optimism in the exhibits and so much naturalness, ease and happiness of communication in the procedure of the presentation that the genre of this first design event was easily determined as a design holiday.

It was the first exhibition with 10 objects gathered that became the model of future "Vodoparad" which presents Kharkov design in all its diversity from real projects to the conceptual and art ones. Every object not only suggested to look at function and contour of a bathroom object in a new way but also had an evident artistic origin.

Quotations:

"We are ready to "promote brains". We have energy for this. This is the policy of our firm. That’s why we can’t limit the number of participants. And we cannot stop the project. Let’s work, but let’s work together!" – Boris Lotkin, chairman of the exhibition organizing committee, board member of UAJV "Vlada-Promtex".

"What UAJV "Vlada-Promtex" has done for the city and designers costs more than money". – Alexander Boychuk, chairman of Kharkov branch of the Union of Designers of Ukraine.

"… and when you exhibit your project, it’s not necessary to say anything any more. Everything is already outspoken". – Sergey Tynynyka, member of the Union of Designers of Ukraine, member of the Union of Artists of Ukraine, a participant of the project.

"We need brains but not toilets and mixers. We need brains. Otherwise we’ll die". – Vladimir Bondarenko, member of the Union of Designers of Ukraine, member of the Union of Artists of the USSR, a participant of the project.