Sloviansk. Exploring the Ukrainian world

A lecture for college kids, a true cultural holiday which was the opening of the 18th Photo Exhibit, talks and launch of books in the community – all in all, Den’s “landing party” put Sloviansk, a city in the north of the Donetsk oblast where Russia’s armed aggression in eastern Ukraine once started, through a great intensive course of intellectual pursuits. Since opening on March 17, the nationally famous photo project has never had a dip in the number of visitors, as it is getting new people by the hour. Some have made a trip solely for this purpose from the nearby city of Kramatorsk and adjacent Mykolaivka and Sviatohirsk. Such demand for Den’s initiative and sincere emotions have convinced us that we were right to send the Photo Exhibit to the east, as it is perceived there in a special way, especially close to people’s hearts.

Serhii Shvydkyi, who serves as vice rector of the Donbas Pedagogical University, where Den’s journalists Ivan Kapsamun and Valentyn Torba launched the triptych “Contemporary History for Dummies” and talked with the students, said that “we pay a lot of attention to the selection of speakers allowed to address students, because we do all we can to protect them from pro-Russian influences and refuse every proposal of such events or lectures. Meanwhile, Den’s team’s visit here is an honor which benefits the university.” Students were coy about asking questions and revealing their views, but listened with great interest. After all, these cultural “landings” are becoming rarer, by the locals’ accounts. This fact reflects the weakness of the government’s efforts towards integration of the Donbas territories, as well as improving the nation’s “cultural aura” in general, to quote the great Lina Kostenko. The university’s rector Svitlana Omelchenko, who paid great attention to the visit of the newspaper, said it offered “a huge basis for reflection, including for adults and people who have already made it in life.” “Little strokes fell great oaks, so I thank you for this conversation with young people,” the young university head told us.

For the city’s Central Library, Den brought a special symbolic gift, a copy of our latest book My Sister Sofia... with a dedication signed by editor-in-chief Larysa Ivshyna (more on that in the article “We Are Expanding the Friendly Intellectual Circle!” published on Den’s website https://day.kyiv.ua/uk/article/den-ukrayiny/rozshyryuyemo-druzhnye-rozumne-kolo). Director Larysa Mamedova was very impressed: “I am extraordinarily grateful for such a nice gift! When I saw the article about this surprise gift for us, and also read that the signature had been made with a pen once presented by Pope John Paul II, I was literally astounded. I thought to myself, ‘Wow!’ We will try to be equal to your attention and demands! Overall, this forms a feeling that we get support from all over Ukraine, and it plays a huge role for us. I am sure that Den’s books, and especially the one inscribed with the good wishes of Ivshyna, will become most popular reading material, finding great demand with our patrons.”

Children, students, seniors, teachers, journalists, businesspeople – they all were brought together by our photo exhibit. They were amazing as well, due to their sincerity and tearful eyes. When approaching young children to ask about their impressions, I expected to hear admiring reviews of bright, optimistic pictures which show their peers, but instead... they led me to the photos depicting soldiers. These were difficult, tragic, and profoundly meaningful. Anastasia Ivanova’s photo Beside a Friend’s Grave, which shows a soldier lying on his brother-in-arms’ grave, was the choice of all (!) the children I surveyed. These younglings know how it feels when the roof of your school gets broken by a shell, and also know that you should tape windows up to prevent them from breaking during shelling. They know how it feels to leave one’s hometown, because you can be killed there. This is a great food for thought... Or maybe you want to know what Sloviansk retirees say about the photo exhibit? “Thank you for coming here to stir up our city. We are lost for words. We weep at every photo,” said elderly sisters Lilia and Nina, who are 88 and 86 respectively.

Internally displaced persons (IDPs) reacted to the works on display in an especially emotional manner. “I have come here with great pleasure and brought my daughter as well. I want to understand what people are now saying and thinking, and it is good to see works with such patriotic content reaching the public,” commented Olha, who came from Marinka. “Stoned thugs with assault rifles made my son go on his knees in Donetsk and threatened to kill him. Grenades exploded at the door of my house. I left because I was scared. I have always liked Den/The Day and remember those thugs asking me: ‘The night has fallen for you, has not it?’ And I replied: ‘No, Den will yet come,’” Borys, an IDP from Donetsk, told us.

“WE WANT TO STAY OPTIMISTIC”

Anna HLAVATSKYKH, daughter of the journalist Ihor Aleksandrov, resident of Sloviansk:

“Pictures and moods differ, but all the photos are atmospheric. Interestingly, the content structure is so skillfully built, starting at the lower floor with optimistic inspiring images, and continuing with pictures of the war as you go up, it is very impressive. Then, you come to photos of children and take a breath. At last, you see photos of politicians. It makes you to intuitively understand the outcome, the development of the tragedy that befell Ukraine. We want to stay optimistic, and it is in our hands. It is important that you have come here, because there are details here which resonate with us, as many people here know some soldiers or have faced tragic situations in life, so these photos are very close to our hearts. Here one can see the concrete lives of concrete people, their looks, smiles, moods, and it is touching. I would like to make an album precisely of these images. My children are waiting for me below, I have not taken them here because they are too young, but when they grow up, I want to have something to give them so that they look and understand me. Your works would illustrate my stories perfectly well.”

“WE PLAN TO BRING OUR STUDENTS HERE”

Halyna and Oleh SAVCHUK, teachers, residents of Kramatorsk:

“We are long-standing readers of Den, having started in 2008, and are subscribed to it this year as well. We cannot imagine our lives without it. Some of these pictures we saw in newspaper publications, and now we have seen them in the original, and they are very impressive. When you look at photos of our politicians, you realize without saying how passe they are. Photos of our days are strikingly encouraging, we mean the pictures of a girl peeping from among grain ears, the look in the eyes of a Ukrainian soldier, and frontline sketches... Many photos are strikingly full of philosophical content. We have come to the Photo Exhibit from Kramatorsk and plan to bring our students here as well, to discuss with them the photos and related events in Ukraine. This will be the best way to explore the Ukrainian world and soul.”

“DEN’S PHOTO EXHIBIT SHOULD BE SHOWN PRECISELY IN THE DONBAS”

Volodymyr SAVENKO, head of the Sloviansk branch of the All-Ukrainian Taras Shevchenko Prosvita Society:

“I have a deep sense of duality in my soul. Many pictures cause excruciating pain, I mean those depicting our boys who got injured during the Russian-Ukrainian war. The picture A Wound of Earth has a deep meaning as it conveys the sense of the recent tragedy and shows the Ukrainian soil as an opened-up body. I am a disabled war veteran myself, and these photos are very close to my mind. They are not for the eyes but rather for the heart. On the other hand, I become full of hope when I look at pictures of the Revolution of Dignity, the struggle for our independence, and bright and intelligent children. It is important that you have come to Sloviansk. Your Photo Exhibit should be shown precisely here. Of course, the artistic level and professional skill reflected in these works are also impressive. I have a feeling that I looked into the Ukrainian soul itself.”

Den’s Photo Exhibit will run at the Central City Library of Sloviansk from March 17 through 26; it is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week. Admission is free.