Newcomers ponder the meaning of 'home' in Fredericton art exhibition

Where is home?

That might be an easy question for some people. But for anyone who's had to move across the world for a better life, there's no easy answer.

An art installation in Fredericton featuring contributions from 127 artists who are immigrants or newcomers to the area doesn't shy away from this tricky question.

The exhibit, hosted by the Multicultural Association of Fredericton, runs until Jan. 31 at Government House on Woodstock Road and is free to the public.

It features paintings, photography, sculpture, and textiles all focused on the question: what does home mean to you?

Alina Karmadanova, an artist originally from Irkutsk, Russia, was living in Shanghai when Russia invaded Ukraine.

After signing a letter against the war, she was summoned to the Russian consulate for a meeting, but declined. She now feels she cannot return home.

"Since the Russian invasion in Ukraine, my feelings towards my home country and motherland became incredibly complex," said Karmadanova, 30, who now lives in Fredericton and studies at NBCC.

Her piece in the show is a diptych, a painting made of two parts, called Propaganda: the beginning and the end.

"Propaganda kind of suggests to people a nice picture that will make them feel well," Karmadanova said, adding that people targeted by propaganda might actually have a life of struggle.

"But they make this picture really attractive, so probably these bright colours is one of the ways to catch the attention and keep it and make people believe in something," she said.

Karmadanova said she feels like she's lost her real home, and that she does not belong anywhere right now - though some aspects of life in Fredericton are comforting and familiar.

"Fredericton is really similar with my home town if we're talking about weather and how small the community is. I really feel maybe it's my new home," Karmadanova said.

Exhibit curator Misha Milchenko was born in Ukraine and grew up in Israel. He said there's a "crazy amount" of talent in Fredericton, but the art scene can be challenging to break into — especially for a newcomer.