The Making of Ukraine: Land of the Brave
The exhibition Ukraine: Land of the Brave combines footage captured by journalists, photographers, and artists, as well as materials from leading media networks, giving visitors the opportunity to hear the voices of ordinary Ukrainians under the extraordinary circumstances of war. The information shared is emotional and uncensored, and asks visitors to bear witness to the violence that has seeped into daily life since 2014. Created by an artistic team that remained in Ukraine during the presentation’s development, this exhibition is deeply personal and reflects the attempt by its creators to process their grief and uncertainty. Over 10,000 photo and video submissions were reviewed to create the visuals, resulting in a complex and nuanced vignette.
The exhibition features footage captured by Sergey Loiko and Dmytro Kozatsky, photojournalists whose work on the front lines has given a human face to this conflict. Previously a contributor to the Los Angeles Times, Loiko is now a full-time member of the territorial defence forces of Ukraine, risking his life and contributing photos from the front-line in the Donetsk Oblast. His work resulted in the award-winning Donetsk Airport Cyborg series, images which gained attention for their exposure of the brutal fight for control of this strategic location.
At the start of Russia’s invasion on February 24th, 2022, Kozatsky was embedded with Ukrainian forces in the city of Mariupol. He remained in the Azovstal Steel Plant for 82 days as the city was besieged, documenting the experience of soldiers, civilians, and children alike as they took shelter within its tunnels for survival. Kozatsky made his photographs freely available as part of his efforts to illuminate the tragedy to which he was a witness. He was later captured by Russian forces and returned to Ukraine as part of a prisoner exchange on September 21st, 2022
