#Faces of Russian Resistance

Citizens: Alexei Gorinov, Ilya Yashin, Dmitry Skurikhin, Vladimir Kara-Murza, Mikhail Krieger, Lilia Chanysheva, Yuri Dmitriev, Alexei Navalny, Andrei Pivovarov, Sasha Skochilenko, Nariman Jilal, Dmitry Ivanov, Maria Ponomarenko, Alexey Moskaliev, Zarifa Sautieva, Vsevolod Korolev

UCF is one of 61 communities nationwide participating in the NEA Big Read in 2023-24. From January to April 2024, our community will celebrate Ilya Kaminsky’s Deaf Republic with a full calendar of events including book clubs, special lectures, book signings, film screenings, theatrical productions and art exhibitions at both the John C. Hitt Library and the Rollins Museum of Art.

Seminole County Public Libraries will host daytime and evening book-discussion groups at each of its five branches, for a total of 10 book clubs this year. Additional book clubs are planned at the John C. Hitt Library, the Rollins Museum of Art, the Central Florida Reception Center, Lake Correctional Institution, and Polk Correctional Institution.

In his 2019 book Deaf Republic, poet Ilya Kaminsky explores the impact of war, displacement, and the experience of trauma on those living with a disability. The power of the literal and metaphorical voice is central to Kaminsky’s evocative story as he weaves descriptions of violence and uncertainty with impactful scenes of resilience and hope. This exhibition, co-curated by Dr. Keri Watson, Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Central Florida, and Dr. Gisela Carbonell, Curator of the Rollins Museum of Art and drawn from the museum’s permanent collection, brings together a selection of works that address these themes from multiple artistic perspectives. Examining notions of silence, communication, memory, and conflict in the personal and political arenas, Silent Protest includes excerpts from Deaf Republic displayed in the gallery alongside paintings, photographs, objects and prints that encourage viewers to pause and reflect.