To mark the fourth anniversary of the full-scale war unleashed by Russia, *Ucraina. La terra di confine* invites us to turn our attention to the remarkable culture of a country situated on Europe’s eastern border, which continues to resist and fight for freedom.
For Ukraine, this is the harshest winter since the invasion began in 2022: taking advantage of the extreme temperatures and long nights, Russia is systematically targeting energy infrastructure in a brutal attempt to plunge the country into darkness and cold, and to break its spirit. Nevertheless, Ukraine continues to resist and to carry on.
Throughout these difficult years, Italy has continued to stand by Ukraine, and a growing number of Ukrainians have found refuge in the country, which for many has become a second home. The Ukrainian Culture Days in Palermo therefore aim not only to draw attention to what is happening in Ukraine, but also to share with the public the culture, stories and voices of the people whom Italy has welcomed.
This year’s programme of events invites us to reflect on the notions of home and belonging. From photographic explorations of the Ukrainian landscape, capable of evoking a sense of rootedness, to the co-creation of a fairy tale that explores the meaning of family; from an autobiographical book that revisits the family photo album, to an outsider’s perspective on a recreational area on the outskirts of Odesa – all these narratives seek to explore the deep and often ineffable bond that ties people to their homeland.
Under the patronage of: Consulate General of Ukraine in Naples, City of Palermo
With the support of: CESIE ETS – IMMERSED project (funded by the ESF+ Social Innovation+ Initiative), Palmigiano e Associati Law Firm, Energy Hub
In collaboration with: “Wilder” cultural association, Cinema City Palermo, 89 books, Palazzo Bonocore, Coop Culture Palermo, Alessi Pubblicità, C.A.B.A. Ukraine Department, Roots Gallery
Printing: Fotograph Palermo
Wine: Tasca d’Almerita
The Landscape as Witness
Photography exhibition
Dmytro Kupriyan, Bogdan Gulyay
curated by Kateryna Filyuk
Roots Gallery – Via Castrofilippo, 40
20 February – 18.00
This exhibition brings together manipulated photographs by two Ukrainian photographers who approach the Ukrainian landscape in profoundly different ways. Bogdan Gulyay’s black-and-white silver gelatine prints are developed but intentionally left unfixed, and their material instability evokes the fragility of memory, particularly when it is marked by traumatic experiences such as war. Dmytro Kupriyan, by contrast, turns his gaze to Mount Hoverla, Ukraine’s highest peak, drawing an analogy with the sacred Mount Fuji in Japan and Katsushika Hokusai’s iconic depictions of it. In both cases, the landscape – whether urban, scarred by bombing and artillery fire, or bucolic, with farmers at work at the foot of the mountain – bears witness to both the grand narrative of history and the small human stories.
Sanatorium
Film screening
Directed by Gar O’Rourke
2025— Documentary, 1h 30m
Officine Bellotti
Via Antonio Gagini, 31
26 February – 19.00
The film is set in Odessa, in southern Ukraine, home to a former Soviet health resort dating from the 1970s — the Kuyalnyk sanatorium. Here, people seeking peace, treatment and humanity live and receive care in the midst of the full-scale war unleashed by Russia. Through his observation of the patients and staff, the director explores the intertwining of the tragic and the comic in human life, which continues even as explosions echo nearby. The film marks the directorial debut of Irish filmmaker Gar O’Rourke and has been selected as Ireland’s entry for the Oscars (98th edition) in the Best International Feature Film category. The screening will be introduced by Carmelo Galati, the artistic director of Cinema City Palermo.
How a Fairy Tale Is Born
Performance
Iryna Ozarynska
RADICI. Natural History Museum
Via Antonio Gagini, 23
27 February 18.30
Irina Ozarynska will present an interactive performance on the transformation of the fairy tale, based on an ancient story of the creation of the world told by our ancestors. It is a journey that begins with the most ancient representations and observations of the world and nature, and with the embodiment of natural forces in fairy-tale creatures. It is a journey that explores how the fairy tale has survived to the present day and what role it plays today. During the performance, participants, together with the artist, will create their own fairy tale in the form of an art book.
The Blue Album
Book launch
Yaryna Grusha in conversation with Eleonora Lombardo
Palazzo Bonocore
Piazza Pretoria, 2
28 February 17.00
As the author explains, the book stems from reflections that have taken shape over the last three years, as an attempt to answer the question often posed by foreigners — why Ukraine is once again defending its independence.
*The Blue Album* is a poignant autobiographical account and, at the same time, a courageous narrative reimagining of the story of a people, but also of all of us who believe in the values of freedom and self-determination. The book recounts the formation and growth of the new contemporary Ukrainian generation, the heir to complex and sometimes faded pages of history, like old photographs. A novel brimming with pride and poetry, through the stories of its protagonists it offers a glimpse into the grand narrative of history and, with the power of literature, calls on us to take a stand.
