TRENDS

Last updated: Mon 27 November 2023 By WCCF Editor

Development of international cooperation in the city-to-city format
International cooperation reduces the risk of conflicts on ethnic and religious grounds, provides an opportunity to exchange experience and implement joint projects. However, due to the new realities in Ukraine, international cooperation has acquired a new and vital importance. The war showed how important it is to have true friends.

Due to the established connections and partnerships with cities around the world before and since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, nowadays Kyiv feels solidarity and support, as well as receiving help needed. It is essential to adapt to new realities and living conditions during and after the war. It is not only buildings, infrastructure that need to be reconstructed, but also the physical and mental health of people, the improvement of which is essential for sustainable development. Here is when culture becomes of vital importance. Experience exchange between cities, training and other types of cooperation for Kyiv determining a pro-European vector for the whole country becomes important. A centuries-old problem of the destruction of Ukrainian statehood, identity and selfhood/culture by the imperialistic Russian, then soviet empire and its followers took place. Therefore, Kyiv as the capital seeks to restore justice regarding the perception of Ukraine in the world. And this happens by conveying the true history of Ukraine, presenting its culture through cooperation in the city-to-city format. More efficient and quick respond is done due to strengthening international ties and partnerships.

Digitalisation of Kyiv
Kyiv is a city of talented IT specialists. Today, technological laboratories, service and product companies, as well as creative studios are being developed and created here. The latest technologies have already been deeply integrated into society and have changed the interaction of citizens with the city, making it more accessible and transparent. The online format became in demand during the COVID pandemic, but it is even more important after the beginning of full-scale invasion. In the field of public services, a large number of work processes have taken a new form.

One of the successful projects is “Kyiv Digital” city application, which allows Kyiv residents to participate in voting, surveys on decision-making and determining the needs of the community, have a map of shelters in their pockets, pay for travel, parking, fines, utilities, follow important notifications, including air raids, public transport, and much more. During martial law, digitalisation did not bypass culture and tourism. Now traveling around Kyiv and places of interest can be done virtually, and most importantly, safely. And this direction has its own prospects, because demonstrations of the expositions of famous museums and exhibition halls open up wide opportunities for self-education and raising the cultural level of people. Moreover, given that due to the threat of destruction of cultural values, museum exhibitions were dismantled and moved to safe places, those who wish have the opportunity to get acquainted with them at least virtually.

Psychological relief of the population
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Kyiv has been relentlessly providing shelter to internally displaced persons. Out of 3.2 million residents who currently reside in the capital, 350 thousand are registered migrants from other regions of Ukraine. Among those are people who have lost their homes, peace and health. The war influenced the psychological state of Ukrainians – those who survived the worst horrors of the frontline and occupation, kids who begin to tremble and hide under everything during loud noises and explosions. More than a month during the first year of the war was spent by Kyivans in shelters. Many people feel exhausted, devastated, anxious, and panicked. However, during hostilities, it is calmness, stability, the ability to control oneself and get out of a crisis in time that is a vital necessity. Unfortunately, these disorders will accompany the Ukrainian population for many years to come.

The city understands the value and need of people for psychological relief. Kyiv implements it through art and zoo therapies. Art therapy is a well-known method of dealing with stress and anxiety. This is especially helpful for children who find it difficult to talk about their own feelings that are incomprehensible to them. They immerse themselves in the world of art, leaving behind their fears and tensions.

In difficult times people unites, striving to help each other. And the city willingly supports new ideas and ways to restore the health of its residents. An example of such initiatives is the project therapy through communication with animals, which was brought to life by the Kyiv Zoological Park. In difficult times, not only people, but also animals come to the rescue. The functions of cultural institutions are changing and acquiring a different meaning. Through the prism of culture and art museums, theatres and parks introduce possible methods of psychological rehabilitation. Returning to the path of a stable spiritual state of people is one of the priority tasks for Kyiv, because people’s health and further stable development of the city depend on it.

Revitalisation of post-industrial facilities as a tool for promoting the development of creative industries
Since 2022, given the need to meet the needs of a large number of temporarily displaced citizens, the issue of creating additional jobs, including through creative industries, has increased rapidly. Creative industries are a strategic direction for increasing employment and economic growth. Successful examples of the implementation of the Kyiv city authorities’ assistance to the development of creative industries are the establishment of the institute of an art competition for the selection of ideas and performers for the creation of citywide cultural events and actions. The peculiarity of this project is to provide an opportunity for artists to participate regardless.

Another example is the launch of the first exhibition of young artists on the basis of the Kyiv City Art Gallery “Lavra”, which helps artists at the beginning of their creative career to become known among the professional community. Kyiv, having large areas of industrial enterprises, conveniently located in the city centre makes it possible to transform degraded industrial complexes into modern, artistic and cultural ones, which are relevant trend, National Cultural, Art and Museum Complex “Mystetskyi Arsenal” on the site of the Kyiv Repair Plant is an example of one of the successful projects. The Mystetskyi Arsenal integrates various types of art in its activities – from contemporary, new music and theatre to literature and museums. Its mission is to promote the modernisation of Ukrainian society and the integration of Ukraine into the global context, based on the value potential of culture. Another example is the PLATFORMA Art Factory, which was created on the territory of a silk factory. This is a complex multifunctional art space that gathers all the new trends in the field of food, sports, music and creativity. Creative industries are actively developing in such places while enriching and strengthening each other.

Mind and priorities of every Ukrainian has changed radically since 24th February 2022. The crisis forces us to adapt to new realities, look for new approaches, solutions, and, in general, continue to live in a new way. The war did not bypass anyone and nothing. There have also been changes in the field of culture. Museums, theatres, and other institutions resort to flexible approaches to creating and presenting cultural products, in particular through the prism of history and the present. A striking example of the new vision is the exhibition of the empty Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko National Museum of Art, which presents bare museum walls framing the places where the paintings used to hang before they were moved to safety. Therefore, the issue of presentation exhibitions of photo-copies of works by prominent Ukrainian artists has become relevant. In addition, this type of exhibitions helps to present Ukrainian culture and national heritage in the international arena, also drawing attention to the terrible problems of today.

There was a change in the repertoire in the theatres. War is not the last theme of the performances, many artistic reflections take place around it. The theatre reacts incredibly quickly to military, political and socio-cultural changes, creating its products in accordance with them. New theatrical projects actualise ethnic Ukrainian culture, raise the issue of Ukrainian history, which contains the prerequisites for a full-scale invasion of the 21st century not as something new, but as a continuation of Russian imperial expansion in Ukraine, then Soviet, and now Kremlin Russia. At the same time, artists are constantly facing new challenges. Multiple alarms stop performances, excursions, concerts and force people to take shelter during their stay in cultural institutions. In addition, there is a ban on holding mass events in Kyiv due to the danger of rocket attacks. Therefore, artists and organisers of cultural events are constantly looking for safe locations. And these difficulties push them to search for new solutions, holding concerts and other events, for example, in the Kyiv metro or shelters. The longer the war lasts, there are more and more challenges. The city and its residents are constantly in search of new flexible approaches to work and life.