Themes by tag: culture

On July 22, Kyiv will unveil the exhibition “The Will to Win: Warriors of Sport” to mark Ukraine’s participation in the Olympic Games. This exhibition showcases the rich history of Ukraine’s Olympic journey, spanning from the late nineteenth century to the present.

The display highlights the devastating impact of russia’s aggression on Ukraine’s sports infrastructure. Visitors will see fragments of trophies, sports equipment, and stadium seats, all damaged or destroyed by russian hostilities. These artifacts were salvaged from various sports venues wrecked by ongoing warfare.

A special section, featuring photographs by Mykola Synelnykov, celebrates the resilience of Ukrainian athletes who continue to train amidst the ruins of their facilities, exemplifying their unbreakable spirit.

For reference: This year, Ukraine is sending a delegation of 140 athletes to compete in 23 sports at the Olympics. Tragically, nearly 500 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have lost their lives since the large-scale russian invasion began.

• culture
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

On July 24, media representatives are invited to a press tour to the renovated “Ukraine” cinema in Ladyzhyn, Vinnytsia region.

The “Ukraine” cinema is an important cultural center for Ladyzhyn and neighboring villages. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the cinema was temporarily closed. Plans to resume screenings after the lifting of quarantine restrictions were thwarted by the full-scale invasion.

“Watch Ukrainian!” Association, which has been implementing a number of cultural and educational projects together with the MHP-Hromadi Charitable Foundation for several years, has initiated the resumption of screenings in the Ladyzhyn cinema.

The Ladyzhyn City Council will organize educational events for young people and families of military and veterans in the cinema, which aims to become a real cultural platform for residents of Ladyzhyn, as well as nearby villages and towns.

Program of the event:

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM – an official opening, communication with invited guests, including ambassadors of the “Cinema for Victory!” National Tour. Andrii Rizol (producer and CEO of “Watch Ukrainian!” Association), Bohdan Beniuk (People’s Artist of Ukraine and Artistic Director of the Kyiv Academic Drama Theater on Podil), Vyacheslav Dovzhenko (actor, performer of the leading roles in the movies Cyborgs, Obmin, Another Franko).

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM – press conference with the participation of the director of the cinema, the management of the MHP-Hromadi Charitable Foundation, “Watch Ukrainian!” Association and representatives of local authorities.

Accreditation is open until July 23.

Transfer from Kyiv is provided for accredited media representatives.

• culture
• Vinnytsia

In a landmark initiative spanning April to July 2024, Ukraine has established its inaugural Team of Cultural First Aiders under the flagship project “Enhancing Capacities in Ukraine for Cultural Heritage First Aid and Recovery Planning.” This team comprises 23 specialized professionals who underwent intensive training.

Throughout the comprehensive program, Ukrainian experts including museum curators, monument conservators, architects, engineers, legal advisors, restorers, and managers engaged in both online and in-person sessions. They drew insights from international and domestic mentors, examining strategies for safeguarding cultural assets during crises. 

Practical exercises, such as assessing the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Viazivka, Zhytomyr region—damaged during the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in 2022—underscored their training. Participants learned to apply international standards in risk management, document damage, evaluate threats, and execute protective measures for endangered cultural sites.

Journalists seeking further details, including visual documentation from the Viazivka training, can obtain additional information about this pioneering effort.

• culture
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Before the outbreak of full-blown war, Liubov Popova thrived as a landscape designer in her hometown of Kharkiv. When war escalated, she relocated to central Ukraine with her child, later returning to her parents’ village of Koziivka in the Kharkiv region. It was there that childhood memories resurfaced, recalling her grandmother’s teachings on foraging herbs and homemade tea crafting.

Initially a pastime, her passion for herbalism soon blossomed into a lucrative endeavor. Today, enthusiasts eagerly await the teas she meticulously crafts, with demand extending beyond Ukraine’s borders. Beyond her herbal pursuits, Liubov actively engages in community development initiatives, organizing workshops for local children on creating tea bouquets.

Based in the Kharkiv region, Liubov Popova is available for media inquiries, both in-person and online.

• culture
• women
• Kharkiv

Artist Yaroslava Yatsuba and schoolboy Mark Ivanchenko met at the beginning of the full-scale invasion. Back then the 13-year-old boy created the first animation based on Yaroslava’s drawing. Mark animated a piece called “Moonlit Night,” in which Ukrainians destroy enemy tanks under the moonlight. Since then, the artist and the animator began to collaborate. Yaroslava draws almost every day, she finds ideas for her works in the news. And Mark turns her drawings into animations.

Yaroslava puts up her “Living Pictures” for a raffle in exchange for donations as well as presents them at international exhibitions. Animations also accompany fundraisers of many military personnel and have already helped raise more than UAH 250,000 to support the Defense Forces.

This year Mark’s animations took first place at the international “Children’s Film Festival,” and the boy donated the prize money to the fundraiser for the Azov Regiment. 

• children
• culture
• women

Before the full-scale invasion, Yevheniia Kim from Mykolaiv (a city in the south of Ukraine) was an icon painter. However, with the first explosions in February 2022, Yevheniia put down her brush and started volunteering. She even turned her workshop into a volunteer hub.

At first, Yevheniia evacuated women and children from Mykolaiv, and after the death of her friend, she joined the efforts to evacuate the wounded from the battlefield. Currently, the woman cooperates with the local Voluntary formation of the territorial community as a volunteer paramedic. Yevheniia does not receive a salary, however, she is able to go to the front line and return home at her own request. Yevheniia is not sure that she will be able to paint again after the Victory.

For reference: Yevheniia Kim is either in Mykolaiv or at the front line. The paramedic is ready to communicate with journalists, both online and in person, by prior arrangement.

• culture
• doctors
• volunteers
• women
• Mykolaiv

On July 11, the training began for guides, who will work at memorial sites of the russo-Ukrainian war in Kyiv region. Their goal is to train qualified specialists who will be able to provide meaningful, reliable information about the tragic events of the war in Kyiv region.

The courses will consist of online and offline classes, trainings, educational and methodological excursions and will culminate in thematic exams. The program is divided into theoretical and practical parts. The training will last 4 weeks.

At the first stage, the organizers selected 29 applicants, including representatives from tourism industry and museum institutions.

Journalists are welcome to cover the training process.

For reference: Guide training takes place within the framework of the project “Kyiv region. Memorial Sites” of the Kyiv Regional State Administration.

• culture
• occupation
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Mykola Velychko from Khmelnytskyi had gotten interested in pottery even before the full-scale invasion. He had even planned to create a pottery residence next to his workshop. The website of the residence was supposed to be launched on February 24, 2022. However, the big war broke out and Mykola joined the army.

In the summer of 2023, the man returned to the workshop and decided to restore the residence project, but now he wants to turn it into a center for the military to recover after service. Mykola plans to produce and sell 10,000 small pots, and use the proceeds to equip the residence.

• culture
• military
• Khmelnytskyi

On July 5, media representatives are invited to the opening night of the inclusive and interactive theatrical performance for children with disabilities entitled “Symphony of Ukrainian Fairy Tales” performed by the Kyiv-Classic Symphony Orchestra under the direction of UNESCO Artist for Peace Herman Makarenko. The event will take place on the territory of Okhmatdyt National Specialized Children’s Hospital. Young patients of the hospital will take a direct part in the play.

In “Symphony of Ukrainian Fairy Tales” musical and theatrical art are combined using an interactive approach. The script is based on Ukrainian folklore. The performance will feature the works of Semen Hulak-Artemovsky, Mykola Lysenko, Levko Kolodub and Volodymyr Ptushkin, as well as Ukrainian folk melodies.

The program of the event includes: a briefing with the participation Volodymyr Zhovnir, General Director of the Okhmatdyt hospital, Herman Makarenko, Head of Kyiv-Classic Symphony Orchestra, Olena Anopriienko, Chief Psychologist of the Okhmatdyt hospital, Vadym Myroshnychenko, Director and Playwright, and Nataliia Miiedinova, actress and gamemaster; the performance; interaction with participants and spectators of the performance.

The event requires accreditation.

For reference: The project is supported by the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation.

• children
• culture
• Kyiv

Artur Sadykov, a modeler from Nikopol, a frontline city in the Dnipro region, has been dedicated to his craft for 10 years. His recent diorama, “Congratulations, Bakhmut,” which captures the destruction of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region during the full-scale Russian invasion, has gained significant attention. 

Creating the diorama took Artur 10 months, making it one of his most complex pieces. He employed various materials, including prefabricated models, 3D-printed models, plastic, cardboard, wood veneer, polymers, gypsum, polystyrene foam, decorative vegetation, glue, varnish, and acrylic paints.

Artur’s collection features other war-themed works such as DAP (Donetsk Airport) Cyborgs, Morning Starts Not With Coffee, Irpin, and By Fire and Sword. 

For security reasons, Artur is only available for interviews via text through social media.

• culture