The war on Ukrainian culture
“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is an attack on Ukrainian territory, history, culture, language, and way of living.”
The global rise of authoritarianism took a horrific turn when Russia invaded Ukraine in February. In this issue we talk with Ukrainian-born artist Julia Tcharfas about her country, the war, and why arts and culture matter in the struggle for democracy. As always, we include actions you can take to help defend democracy at home and in Europe.
ANOTHER ARTIST FOR DEMOCRACY
Julia Tcharfas
"I imagine all artists have a stake in freedom of expression and should want it for everybody."
Artist Julia Tcharfas has long been interested in both Ukrainian and Russian mythologies. Her work is based in archives and collections, taking the exhibition as form. Her installation Science of Rehearsal, for example, builds on the work of Ukrainian geochemist and philosopher Vladimir Vernadsky, whose development of the concepts of “biosphere” and “noosphere” were highly influential in Cosmist philosophy and for the creators of the Biosphere 2 experiment in Arizona.
Tcharfas was born in Donetsk, a city in the eastern Ukraine region invaded and occupied by Russia since 2014. She has lived in the US since 1994 and is currently based in Los Angeles.
Today, Tcharfas explains, mythologies about Russia and Ukraine are playing out on the battlefield. Ukraine, whose name translates to “outskirts” or “borderland” has a weird place in Russia's military fantasy. At times, it was seen as a non-place; at other times it was referred to as "Little Russia.”
Since Ukraine gained independence in 1991 as the Soviet Union collapsed, Ukrainians’ sense of themselves as a nation and as a people has been revived. Their 30-year struggle to live in a democratic state with the rule of law and without corruption has increasingly pulled them out of Russia’s sphere of influence. This has not been an anti-Russian movement, Tcharfas says, but it does not fit with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s worldview or his view of Ukraine.
Russia annexed Crimea and occupied eastern Ukraine in 2014 after popular protests known as the “Maidan Revolution” led to the removal of the corrupt President Viktor Yanukovych who had ties to Putin. The violent Russian occupation of the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine has led many to deepen their Ukrainian identity. Many stopped speaking Russian and began to learn more about Ukrainian culture, language, and history.
Ukrainian culture and language were suppressed for much of its Soviet history, and Putin’s Russia, with its imperialist ambitions, would erase it completely. Tcharfas looks to young artists in Ukraine especially to resurrect and reclaim the nation’s culture. “It will take the cultural sector to give Ukraine its free and independent voice.”
She also looks to culture to understand the war. As she writes in a recent essay, “Here in the anxious present, I find my memories of Donetsk no longer serve me to understand what is going on at the other end of the portal. To make sense of the madness, I turn to cinema, to literature, and to the young artists that live in Ukraine.”
Artists in the US and other countries have a role to play, too. Tcharfas encourages artists to read about Ukrainian history and get to know the work of Ukrainian artists. The global arts community can help keep Ukrainian culture alive by sharing and highlighting the work of its artists, filmmakers, and writers.
“Ukraine’s geographical integrity is being attacked, but under that is an attack on its culture and history,” she says. “This is one of those points where celebrating and speaking out, watching films, reading books, and learning about the art of a country, matter.”
Learn more about Julia Tcharfas and her work at juliatcharfas.com. You can also read her recent essay, “Donetsk Through the Museum, the Monument, and the Diary,” at Topical Cream.
ACTION ITEMS
Ways the arts community can support Ukraine
Olesia Ostrovska-Liuta, director general of the Mystetskyi Arsenal National Art and Culture Museum Complex in Kyiv, reminds us in an Artnet News op-ed that "this war is a war against the whole civilized world, free thought, democratic values, and truth." She recommends actions the arts community can take, which include
Sharing stories of cultural cooperation with Ukraine
Using the facades of offices and other spaces for artistic actions showing the colors of the Ukrainian flag
Highlighting contemporary Ukrainian artists and writers
Artists 4 Democracy joins its voice with those demanding that museums, galleries, and arts nonprofits no longer accept money from, sell work to, or keep on their boards any people tied to the Putin regime. Activism around Sackler family arts philanthropy launched a much-needed discussion about how the art world is financed. As the Anti-Corruption Data Collective stated the issue plainly in their 2020 headline: America’s Cultural Institutions Are Quietly Fueled by Russian Corruption.
Russian troll farms are busy spreading disinformation and anti-Ukraine propaganda on social media. Before you like or re-share something, stop to investigate whether it’s actually true. If you can’t confirm it, don’t share. If you’re looking for reliable news in English about the war, check out The Kyiv Independent.
If you’re able to make a donation in support of Ukraine—or host a fundraiser—here are a few outlets to consider:
The Kyiv Biennial is raising funds to help members of the artistic and cultural community who stayed in Ukraine with support for their basic needs
Ukrainian Emergency Art Fund is providing short term financial aid and stipends to cultural workers in the country.
#CookForUkraine is raising money for UNICEF
Center for Disaster Philanthropy responds to disasters and humanitarian crises
Urgent Action Fund is supporting women, trans, and nonbinary activists on the ground in and surrounding Ukraine
The LA Times offers this list of organizations providing relief and support, including several based in California
A GoFundMe organized by the US State Department is crowdsourcing donations to be re-granted to nonprofits supporting vulnerable communities.
The International Committee for Museums and Collections of Modern Art (CIMAM) has compiled an impressive list of initiatives to donate funds and materials in support of Ukraine
Find a Ukrainian cultural center near you (here’s the one in LA) to discover other ways to support the country and its culture
Whenever you’re donating, make sure you don’t get scammed. Take the time to verify any direct message, link, email, or text with an appeal to donate. We’ve researched all the links above, but always do your own due diligence. We also recommend you look through their websites to find the one that’s the best fit for your personal values.
Finally, Tcharfas offers a few links to help you learn more about the long-standing fight for a free and democratic Ukraine, from the LA Review of Books, Electric Literature, and History Today.
ART NEWS FROM UKRAINE
Museums and artworks have been destroyed in Ivankiv and Mariupol. An art school and a theater both serving as shelters were bombed. Art news from Ukraine also includes efforts to save cultural heritage and Ukrainian artists, providing emotional and moral support:
Cultural heritage professionals around the globe have organized Saving Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Online (SUCHO)
One of Ukraine’s biggest rock stars, Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, on tour on the front line (The Guardian)
Young dancers from the Kyiv City Ballet remain in France, displaced when the invasion began after they arrived for a two-week tour (National Geographic)
Ukrainian musicians performing in bomb shelters and bombed streets (New York Times)
In the wake of the invasion, the art world questions its dependence on Russian oligarchs (The Guardian) who’ve helped keep Putin in power (Lawfare)
For a more intimate understanding of the war, read the daily diary by Ukrainian author Yevgenia Belorusets, published on Artforum. You can also read a series of short pieces about the war by Ukrainian writers, compiled by The Paris Review.
Thanks for reading the Artists 4 Democracy Newsletter. Artists 4 Democracy promotes democratic and civic engagement by mobilizing artists to get involved in political action. Through voter registration drives, fundraisers, and events we seek to foster and protect our participatory democracy.
Thank you for this insight.