“Saving together. Creating together”: exhibit about EU support for Ukrainian heritage opened in Kyiv on Europe Day

An exhibition called "Cultural Mosaic" was launched at Sofiivska Square in Ukraine's capital to celebrate Europe Day.

Ukrinform reports that it highlights the projects to save Ukrainian heritage that the European Union supported.

In action to abandon the old "victory day" in Ukraine on May 9, the Ukrainian president established in Decree No. 266/2023 of May 8 Ukraine will celebrate Europe Day from now on May 9. Previously, this day was celebrated every year on the third Saturday of May. The Day of Peace and Victory over Nazism will be marked on May 8.

"Ukraine will come out of the war victorious, and its culture will continue to strengthen the European family," says Matti Maasikas, the head of the EU representation in Ukraine, on one of the exhibition stands.

Nine stands in the open air in front of St. Sophia Cathedral display descriptions of elements of Ukraine's cultural heritage that needed attention and protection due to the threats of Russia's invasion. 

The motto of the exposition was: "Together we preserve. Together we create." Thanks to financial assistance from the EU, particularly the "House of Europe" program, Ukraine could digitize museum collections and architectural monuments, strengthen protection, and ensure the preservation of museum collections during the war.

The exhibition also talks about folk clothes – costumes of the center and east of Ukraine- taken to a safe place from hostilities.

There is also information about the My Art platform, created in Ukraine's southern Mykolaiv region, which suffered Russian shelling to support local cultural projects, and the initiative to restore old wooden street doors, "Thousands of Odesa Doors."

Information from the exhibition is available in Ukrainian and English. The representative office of the European Union in Ukraine organized the exhibition.