VARVARA DEGTIARENKO is a New Orleans based filmmaker who aims to tell stories that are rooted in preserving memory. She believes memory can inherently be an act of creation and incorporates this idea in much of her work. She studied art history at VCU in Richmond (2011) and graduated from Strelka Institute in Moscow, Russia (2013), an interdisciplinary urbanism program, where she focused on local museums as avenues for positive change. Her studies, as well as working in textile conservation both in the US and in Russia, instilled in her a deep value for preserving the past as a form of activism.
Degtiarenko incorporates her philosophy of art conservation ethics in her approach to filmmaking. She sees documentary film as a conservation tool, exploring themes of historical memory, inclusion, or identity. She also explores narratives within the realm of music and artistic process.
