In the words of First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska: “In a time when Ukraine is facing the most difficult challenges, our culture remains our strength and inspiration. The ‘Ukraine is Here’ project on Google Arts & Culture gives everyone an opportunity to discover outstanding Ukrainians who have glorified our land all over the world: Mykola Leontovych, Solomiya Krushelnytska, Maria Prymachenko, and Kateryna Bilokur and many more. Today, when Russian occupiers are trying to destroy our heritage, this project is especially important. It not only preserves Ukrainian culture but also promotes it worldwide. So let us together reveal the beauty of Ukraine to the world – its art, history, and traditions, because they are our strength and identity.”
Ukraine is Here is a long-term initiative to digitize and share Ukraine’s vibrant cultural history. It has now vastly expanded since it was first announced two years ago offering an unprecedented digital resource of immersive stories, virtual galleries, 3D historic treasures and videos — all in one place for global audiences to explore.
Below you’ll find some of the highlights of what’s new from the National Museum of Decorative Arts of Ukraine, Lviv Historical Museum, Ancient Lviv Museum, Ukrainian Institute, Skeiron, Ukraine House, Hopchytsya History Museum and many more partners.
Collage with 4 pioneers from Ukrainian culture: history, music, literature & art | from the collection of CFC Big Ideas in association with the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy & National Museum of the History of Ukraine.
1. Cultural icons and pioneers
Meet the father of Ukrainian music Mykola Leontovych, the prominent composer, known as the author of a world-renowned Shchedryk (adapted into an English-language Christmas carol, Carol of the Bells).
Explore the life of a prominent self-taught artist who gleaned painting techniques through careful observation of the natural world, a Ukrainian folk artist Kateryna Bilokur.
Get to know the renowned poetess Lesya Ukrainka, who reconceived the present through the prism of world history and mythology. Her works have left an indelible mark on Ukrainian language and culture.
Meet the Ukrainian historian, archaeologist and scientist Volodymyr Antonovych, who saved and replenished the collections of Ukrainian archaeological artifacts and numismatic treasures.
3D model of St. George’s Cathedral digitized by Skeiron.
2. Monumental locations
St. George’s Cathedral is a baroque-rococo cathedral located in the city of Lviv, the historic capital of western Ukraine. This masterpiece from renowned architects Bernard Meretyn and Martin Urbanik is now on UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger.
3D model of Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet digitized by Skeiron.
Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet named after the famous opera singer Solomiya Krushelnytska.
The upper half of a realistically modeled statuette of a woman | National Museum of the History of Ukraine.
3. Historic treasures
Discover one of the most significant cultures in South-Eastern Europe, emerged because of interaction between various Neolithic groups.
Take a journey through an ancient civilization known for its striking pottery and complex settlements: Cucuteni–Trypillia culture.
Immersive virtual gallery featuring Paintings of Cossacks | Lviv Historical Museum.
4. Virtual galleries
Explore the phenomenon of the Cossacks, warriors and defenders of their native land, through the artists’ lens in the virtual gallery from the Lviv Historical Museum.
Inside the Odesa National Academic Opera and Ballet Theater | CFC Big Ideas in association with the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy.
5. Modern Ukrainian Ballet
Discover Modern Ukrainian Ballet in 360 degrees through the interactive story “Fates” – a new type of performance at the Odesa Opera House.
Source: Google