“Covert Irradiation” (2026) is an audiovisual work by Volodymyr Khomenko (video) and Alexey Shmurak (sound). It reflects on the psychological and media consequences of the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster (1986). To cope with the unknown during catastrophes, the human psyche defends itself through magical thinking: conspiracy theories and myths filled with a sense of alienation and strange physicality.

Centralization, a planned economy, and a closed society create an information vacuum. The state fails to inform its citizens or create a realistic narrative about the catastrophic event, leaving this vacuum to be filled by a unique folklore of the industrial era. Stylistically, the video and audio engage with the media clichés of that period: poetic-esoteric cinema, detached TV and radio news, early visual cyberpunk, and Perestroika-era documentaries.

The work was commissioned by the National Center “Ukrainskiy Dim” (Kyiv) for the exhibition “Chornobyl. Shelter Object. 40 Years Later” (April–June 2026). The videos were also presented at Brave Factory 2026.