Three Decades On: The UHEC Archivist's Return Visit to Ukraine

This past August, our own Michael Andrec had a chance to travel to Ukraine for the first time since just prior to the 1991 declaration of independence. He represented the UHEC at the opening of the exhibition “Za Voliu Ukrainy!/Forever Free Ukraine!” at the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War Memorial Complex in Kyiv. A co-production by that museum and the “Ukraine – 21st Century” Foundation, this is the first major exhibition in Ukraine to include substantial loans from Ukrainian American museums and archives (including the UHEC, the Ukrainian National Museum in Chicago, the Ukrainian Museum and Library in Stamford, the Ukrainian Museum in New York, and the Ukrainian Academy of Arts and Sciences) as well as from more than a dozen institutions in Ukraine.

In addition to being in Kyiv during the celebrations of the 30th anniversary of the renewal of Ukrainian independence, he also had a chance to travel with his museum and archives colleagues to museums and historical sites in Baturyn and Chyhyryn.

In this talk, he will present his experiences and observations about Ukraine, Ukrainian museums, and shifting attitudes towards Ukrainian history, culture, and language.

This webinar is FREE, but registration is required to view.  Donations are gratefully accepted!

Image: View of the Chyhyryn National Historic and Cultural Preserve, site of the first capital of the Ukrainian Cossack Hetmanate (1648-1676). Photograph by M. Andrec.

The UHEC is supported by funds from the Somerset County Cultural & Heritage Commission, a partner of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.