Juni
Do
12 Fr
13 Sa
14 So
15 Mo
16 Di
17 Mi
18 Do
19 Fr
20 Sa
21 So
22 Mo
23 Di
24 Mi
25 Do
26 Fr
27 Sa
28 So
29 Mo
30
Juli
Di
1 Mi
2 Do
3 Fr
4 Sa
5 So
6 Mo
7 Di
8 Mi
9 Do
10 Fr
11 Sa
12 So
13 Mo
14 Di
15 Mi
16 Do
17 Fr
18 Sa
19 So
20 Mo
21 Di
22 Mi
23 Do
24 Fr
25 Sa
26 So
27 Mo
28 Di
29 Mi
30 Do
31
Aug.
Fr
1 Sa
2 So
3 Mo
4 Di
5 Mi
6 Do
7 Fr
8 Sa
9 So
10 Mo
11 Di
12 Mi
13 Do
14 Fr
15 Sa
16 So
17 Mo
18 Di
19 Mi
20 Do
21 Fr
22 Sa
23 So
24 Mo
25 Di
26 Mi
27 Do
28 Fr
29 Sa
30 So
31

Ostap Slyvynsky: Ukraine 2022-2025: Why culture matters in bad times?

26 June 2025, 6 – 8 p.m.

 

venue: Historical Museum Bielefeld

 

tickets: free admission

 

Dr. Ostap Slyvynsky’s lecture will be followed by a discussion chaired by Dr Mareike Gronich (Bielefeld University) (tbc)

 

Welcome: Prof. Kornelia Kończal  (Bielefeld University)

 

Organisers: Historical Museum Bielefeld and the Working Group Public History at the Bielefeld University in cooperation with UnderstandUkraine and German-Ukrainian Society.

 

The event will take place in English language.

 

Bio

Ostap Slyvynsky was born in Lviv in 1978. He is a poet, translator, essayist, and literary critic. His works have been translated into multiple languages and published internationally. Academically, OstapSlyvynsky earned his PhD in Humanities in 2007, focusing on silence in contemporary Bulgarian prose. He serves as an Associate Professor at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, teaching Polish literature, contemporary East Central European literatures, and translation studies. Beyond academia, Ostap Slyvynsky has been actively involved in literary and human rights initiatives. He was the first program director of the International Literary Festival in Lviv (2006–2007) and has organized various literary events in Ukraine. In 2022, he was elected Vice President of PEN Ukraine. His recent work includes A Ukrainian Dictionary of War (2023), a documentary project compiling testimonies from participants and witnesses of the Russian aggression against Ukraine.

 

Abstract

It often seems to us that in times of war and cataclysms there is no place for culture. When it comes to survival, there is no time to create beauty. But real wars – in particular, Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine – prove the opposite. In this lecture, I will try to give four answers to the question of why culture is important while extreme violence continues. Of course, it cannot stop someone who has come with one and only goal – to kill you and destroy everything you have lived for. But it can perform other tasks. It strengthens the community and connects times, thanks to which we do not feel imprisoned in our terrible here-and-now. It helps to overcome silence. It bears witness and seeks justice. It reminds us of our values.