Susan Hwang

I can’t keep up with the weekends.

I biked into the East Village from Bushwick on Saturday night.  I normally like getting on my bike.  In regards to biking, my motto is, “Get on; you won’t regret it.”   When you’re on your bike it feels good.

It’s similar to my motto about horses — “Everything looks better from the back of a horse.”

I also have a motto about singing — “It’s better to sing than not to sing.”

But I almost amended my motto on bikes Saturday night.  I don’t see how this is possible, but there was extra chaos in the traffic that evening.  And then once you’re in the city, there are all the drunk weekenders standing in the middle of the street, getting out of cabs, talking loudly enough to knock you off balance.

However, the flashing headlights of all the citibikes coming at me on the Williamsburg bridge looked like fireflies.  It was kind of pretty.   That and the moments of lift and solitude I got on the bridge gave me that feeling of flying that I know from my dreams.

All this transportation was so I could see my friends from Yara Arts Group.  Vova (Waldemart Klyuzko) had an art show opening at The Ukrainian Museum on 6th Street.  It was a collection of his protest art and photography, much of it used in demonstrations against Russia.  I learned how to say “dick head” in Ukrainian.  This is Vova with a piece of one of his pieces.  It’s a bomb.  He just happened to be wearing an explosion tshirt.  He said he got the shirt in NYC.  I said that’s funny, because it looks like Kyiv.  All the charred remains of those fires that burned and burned are left in the city.  And bits are being taken and sold to tourists.  Protest chachkas.  Resistance rubble.

Vova with the bomb.  That is perfect.  Others made maletov cocktails.  Vova makes artbombs.

You can see the exhibit — “We Are All Ukraine” now through July 6th at The Ukrainian Museum – 222 East 6th Street (bet. 2nd and 3rd Aves.) New York, NY 10003, ph: 212 228-0110.

The highlight of the night though, came from this lady:

She beat up Vova’s installation of Putin as a blow-up doll.

She’s 92 years old.

She really enjoyed this.

Afterwards, she said, “That makes me feel better.”