World Premier of Oseredok's New Immersive Exhibitions

Visitors to the Ukrainian cultural and educational center - Oseredok have the opportunity to see, hear and immerse themselves in the world of Ukrainian art.

It is here that unique paintings, photos and video materials of the events of historical Ukraine and the present have been collected in new immersive exhibitions.

"These exhibitions are a real technological step for Oseredok. Here we have two immersive exhibitions: "Immersive World of Ukrainian Art" and "Ukraine: Land of the Brave". These multimedia exhibitions surround the visitor with 360 degrees of original content, music and Ukrainian art",  notes the curator of Oseredok exhibitions, Oleksandra Shkandriy.

UMulticultural: What is the importance of art in times of war? Is it appropriate to promote Ukrainian art now? (answers also by Oleksandra Shkandriy)

I think that this should be answered by Ukrainians and all people who work in the artistic or cultural sphere. You know, we discussed this a lot within the team, and we decided that it is not only important, but also necessary to do at such a time. One of the thesis that comes out of Russia's war in Ukraine is that Ukraine is not an independent nation or an independent people, and that is part of what was used to justify the invasion. Therefore, it is very important for us, in particular for me, to have an exhibition that truly celebrates what makes us Ukrainians. We are incredibly diverse both ethnically and linguistically, we are really different people, but culture in art is what really unites us. We really want many people to have the opportunity to learn more about Ukraine.

UMulticultural: You have been working with war photos and videos for a long time. How difficult was it mentally to work with these materials?

-Our creative team, working from both Kyiv and Odesa, to create a part of the exhibition "Ukraine: Land of the Brave", they reviewed more than 10,000 images from photojournalists such as Serhiy Loyko, Dmytro Kozatskyi, as well as from the leading TV channel 1 +1 to everyone else who volunteered to share information. I think for those teams in particular, going through the raw footage was very difficult mentally. I know it is also difficult for the audience to watch this exhibition. Therefore, we recommend viewers to be over 16 or their parents to be more careful. But we believe that it is important for people to witness what is happening, because this is the reality that people in Ukraine live with every day, and we have been at war for more than 9 months. And the situation at the front is only getting worse.

UMulticultural: Which part of the exhibition is the most impressive?

I think the most impressive part of the exhibition is the diversity. Some people have prejudiced ideas or stereotypes about Ukrainian art. But Ukrainian art, like many other artistic traditions, is incredibly diverse. We start with Taras Shevchenko, who is better known as a poet, a national thinker in Ukrainian history, but also a very talented artist and the father of critical realism in Ukraine. Next, we move in time to such an artist as Maria Pryimachenko, who, as you know, worked outside the academic circle, who was a folk craftsman, drew inspiration from many deep-rooted and such vivid traditions that make Ukrainian art special. And then we go to the Oseredok permanent art collection, where we have our museum collections, which include things like textiles, Easter eggs, different photographs of a kind of historical development of Ukrainians in Canada, and artworks that were different styles from more abstract and avant-garde to more classical and representational art. So it's very important for me to show it to people who may not know anything about Ukrainian art, or people who may think they do, but will be surprised by this exhibition to see the diversity of artistic styles.

Yuliia Kovalenko, Ukrainian View, U MULTICULTURAL