The Centre for Countering Disinformation has recorded the spread online of fake claims that Irish artist John Gerrard allegedly created an installation in Texas in the form of a “modern Ukraine flag” made of black smoke.
This was reported by the Centre.
According to the Centre, such posts are sharing a video clip styled to look like a report by the international TV channel USA Today. It claims the artwork is dedicated to Ukraine and criticises its leadership.
The Centre stresses that this is a fabricated video. There is no such report on USA Today’s official platforms, and the installation itself is not connected to Ukraine.
In fact, it is John Gerrard’s work “Western Flag”, created in 2017. It is a digital simulation of a flag formed from black smoke. According to the artist’s concept, the work symbolises the threat of global warming, carbon dioxide emissions and humanity’s dependence on oil.
The Centre notes that spreading fake reports bearing the logos of well-known international media outlets is one of the methods used by the Russian disinformation network “Matryoshka”.
In the Centre’s assessment, the aim of this information campaign is to create a false impression of Western society’s and artistic circles’ attitudes towards Ukraine, as well as to discredit international support for our country.