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During war, art becomes a place of peace where you can escape from daily explosions, losses, and grief. A tool that keeps you from breaking down and heals a person from the inside, transforming into artistic images what you can’t always say in words. It helps to preserve humanity when something wild and dark comes at it. It also creates an idea of the future, even when the present seems like complete chaos. That is why today it is so important to hear from those who continue to create in conditions where others barely find the strength to simply live.
We discuss the role of art in times of war in the new issue of “Conversations about Restoration” with the renowned Kherson artist Yana Holubiatnykova.
Yana Holubiatnykova is a member of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine, a participant in all-Ukrainian and international exhibitions. She was born and raised in Kherson, where she studied at an art school and later graduated with honors from the Crimean Art School named after M. S. Samokysh. She primarily works in the genre of painting, preferring realistic forms with a deep emotional undertone. Her paintings are kept in private collections in Ukraine and abroad. Before the start of the full-scale war, Yana actively taught, participated in group and personal projects, and worked as a costume designer at the Kherson Regional Academic Music and Drama Theater named after Mykola Kulish. The artist remained in Kherson throughout the city's occupation, and today, despite constant shelling, she continues to work in her native studio. Almost all local artists left, some disappeared during the occupation; in the House of the Artist, where there are more than fifteen studios, she works alone.
“Before the war, my studio was in a semi-basement. During the war, I moved to the House of Artists on the 5th floor, where there is more light for painting. For an oil painter, large windows are particularly beneficial. And, well, it just so happened that I arrived in a more dangerous place when the war began. I don’t see anything heroic in this; it just happened that way. I have large canvases, a workplace, materials, and it’s difficult to transport all this, find the right place, and pay rent for it. Of course, now it’s dangerous to go to the studio. But for some reason, I don’t have much fear,” says Yana Holubiatnykova, answering our question about how the security situation has affected her work. “A person is such an adaptive creature, and he quickly adapts to any conditions.”
Explosions can be heard clearly from the fifth floor of the studio. To go outside, you have to count the arrivals and catch the “window” when it seems at least a little safer.
“I count: one frag, second, third, fourth. Yeah, you can run. And you think: which street is better, where there is less whistling? But when you enter the studio, you are like a monk in a cell. You just work.”
War changes art, even if you don’t plan it. Yana admits that many works conceived before 2022 have already undergone changes in the process. The subconscious places the accents itself: blood stains, dark silhouettes, disturbing shadows. One of such works is the image of the bird Sirin against the background of large red poppies: “I was asked: why poppies? Why such a 'girlish' background? But poppies are a wound, they are blood. Sirin is a prophetic bird that sings melancholy songs at the turn of significant events. I myself was surprised. I understand that the war subconsciously influences my works, although they were conceived before the war.”
During the conversation with Yana Holubiatnykova, we became curious about what role artists play today and what role they will be able to play in the restored cities.
“When answering this question, we need to start with what art is for. Art has many layers and many different tools for influencing society. Today, many works reflect reality, and this is also necessary. But in art, there are many and higher levels, levels of influencing society. Unfortunately, some artists do not understand this. This is a very responsible approach, and we need to understand how we influence the subconscious. Art does not just influence society, it educates,” says Yana. According to the artist, those artists who remained in the city can no longer work due to burnout and constant stress. Some convey the horrors of reality. There are those who work “for the future”, building a new society, laying new meanings through their art. Yana emphasizes that art does not replace the service of the government or stop missiles, but sets the direction. And therefore, it also shapes the future.
That is why, during the occupation of Kherson, many paintings and works of art were stolen from local museums and the exhibition of Kherson members of the Union of Artists, which was exhibited in the corridors of the Kherson Regional State Administration building. Even during the occupation, Yana managed to return some of the works from this exhibition, but not all: "One painting is now on the poster in Odessa. It was almost stolen. I visited the commandant's office many times, explaining to each new commandant that it was my work. In the end, they returned it."
This painting features a large canvas with girls in red dresses, made of polyethylene film. For the artist, it is special: in this way, she tried to understand and regain the feeling of freedom that she saw in her goddaughter and her friends. It was the images from this painting that gave Yana the confidence and courage to “rescue” the works of Kherson artists from the clutches of the Russian occupiers.
The theft of paintings has become a revealing aspect of the fact that art is essential, including for propaganda, both positive and negative. It is crucial for the development of society and its restoration.
In an interview, Yana repeatedly emphasized: artists can and want to be part of the restoration of the city's cultural environment, but this requires organized and honest interaction with local authorities. Often, artists must initiate a dialogue themselves, contact departments, attend meetings, and literally "knock on doors" to convey their proposals or urgent needs. According to the artist, authorities sometimes turn to artists in the form of "one-time requests" - to organize an event, paint a mural, or participate in a project. But there is almost no systematic cooperation. Today, Kherson artists need help in preserving their works - to relocate them to a safer place, as there is a large number of unique and valuable works in Kherson.
“We need a platform where people of art can talk, communicate, and discuss their paintings. I had such an experience, and it is exciting,” says Yana Holubiatnykova.
Kherson continues to live under shelling. Yana - to work. It is thanks to such people that the city maintains its cultural nerve, that delicate thread that prevents us from becoming completely callous. Art does not stop even during war. On the contrary, it becomes sharper, more honest, and more necessary. Because where normality is lost, it is art that sometimes returns to us the ability to see the world of people, rather than one of “primal evil.”
We invite you to participate in an anonymous survey to help us better understand the moods, needs, and challenges faced by the population of the Kherson region, and to assess the effectiveness of the work of public organizations and authorities. Each of your answers is a crucial brick in the foundation of your future recovery. Your answers are completely anonymous and will be used exclusively in a generalized form for analytical purposes.
The interview has been produced by the Kherson Regional Charitable Foundation “Union” with the support of the European Endowment for Democracy (EED). Its contents do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of EED. Responsibility for the information and views expressed in this publication lies entirely with the authors.
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