Posted at 6:00 a.m.
In the main cities of the country, a mad race has been underway for two weeks to shelter paintings, sculptures and other works of art and to protect fragile architectural elements against the fall of bombs and missiles.
This is the case, for example, of Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, a jewel of heritage built in the 11thand century, recalls the daily West France in a report published a few days ago. To date, the cathedral with Byzantine-inspired architecture would have been spared.
This cathedral and all the monastic and lavra buildings of Kyiv-Pechersk constitute one of the seven Ukrainian places listed as World Heritage by UNESCO.
This branch of the UN rightly expressed its fears in the face of the Russian invasion on March 3. Stating first that this “escalation of violence”, marked by the death of many civilians and children is “totally unacceptable”, the Director General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, launched an appeal for the protection of Ukrainian cultural heritage. , including the seven World Heritage sites.
It also calls for the “safeguarding of Odessa and Kharkiv, member cities of UNESCO’s network of creative cities, as well as national archives, some of which belong to the UNESCO Memory of the World register, or even places of memory of the tragedy of the Holocaust”.
This concern of UNESCO is heard everywhere. Thus, the director of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Stéphane Aquin, sent us this statement: “We are terribly saddened by the situation in Ukraine, which we deeply deplore, and remain concerned about the fate reserved for cultural institutions and places dedicated to memory. For the moment, we are following the progress of the reflections via the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) and the Canadian Museums Association (CMA) and trying to identify the best ways for us to help and take concrete action. . We are absolutely ready to offer our resources in sharing with our Ukrainian colleagues and to serve as a refuge for Ukrainian heritage in case of need. »
Negative effects
European media are reporting on efforts across the country to preserve cultural property.
The Guardianamong others, reports that the Ivankiv City Museum was set on fire, which resulted in the destruction of paintings by Maria Prymachenko, an artist well known for her naive works of art.
In Lviv, many heritage treasures have been found and hidden, continues the British daily. This is the case, for example, of an altarpiece showing Jesus, Mary and Mary Magdalene removed from an Armenian church of the XIVand century and hidden in a bunker. This same sculpture had been removed from the gaze of the Nazis during the Second World War.
PHOTO FROM THE WEBSITE OF GUARDIAN
In Lviv, workers are busy protecting four sculptures installed in the Old Market Square.
Everywhere in the streets, scaffolding stands around statues, sculptures and the walls of churches that we try to shelter by wrapping them in canvas and other materials.
At the Kharkiv museum, part of the collections, vulnerable to explosions, have been lowered into the cellars. “But a drastic change in the temperature and humidity regime will have a negative effect on their conservation status,” says Olha Sahaidak, co-founder of the charity and cultural networking organization Dofa Fund, on her Facebook page.
Threatened, art also continues to entertain. Thus, according to Maria Glazounova, an employee of the Office of National Film Archives in Kyiv quoted by The Guardiansilent films and very popular animated works were screened in a subway station to entertain the many refugees from the bombs.
Finally, in its Thursday issue, the magazine Point spoke with Valery Freland, Director General of the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas (Aliph) which released a $2 million emergency fund for Ukraine.
“This first envelope must finance emergency measures for the protection of Ukrainian museums and sites under threat,” he said. “We are already engaged in supporting the emergency protection of a dozen Ukrainian museums or sites, in the West and in the South. Requests for help come to us every day. The situation is changing rapidly and the fighting is intensifying. So it’s a race against time. »
Mr. Freland greets in passing the museum workers who remain on site. “In many museums, a large number of staff have been called in for defense efforts and the remaining team members are each doing the work of 10 people, under very difficult conditions. »
With West France, Point, The Guardian
The seven Ukrainian sites listed as World Heritage by UNESCO
Saint Sophia Cathedral and the complex of monastic buildings and Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra; the entire historical center of Lviv; the geodesic arc of Struve; the primary and ancient beech forests of the Carpathians and other parts of Europe; the residence of the metropolitans of Bukovina and Dalmatia; wooden tserkvas from the Carpathian region of Poland and Ukraine; the ancient city of Chersonèse Taurique and its chora.
Source: UNESCO website
A concert for peace at the Notre-Dame basilica
PHOTO OLIVIER JEAN, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Pianist Jean-Michel Blais
As the war escalates in Ukraine and many countries around the world prepare to welcome millions of refugees, voices unite to offer a concert of music for peace at the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal. The Orchester de l’Agora, under the direction of conductor Nicolas Ellis, pianist Jean-Michel Blais and soprano Natalie Choquette will be present, as well as a dozen other classical performers. The actress Claudia Ferri will host the evening and Nadia Monczak, the artistic direction. The final program for the evening remains to be confirmed, but Bach, Chopin, Mozart and Max Richter will be on the menu. This concert for peace is an initiative of the Korwin-Szymanowski Family Foundation. Profits will be donated to the Folkowisko Association in Poland, which carries out a humanitarian mission on the ground, with the victims of the war.
Tuesday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m., at the Notre-Dame Basilica. Free admission, with voluntary fundraising.
Luc Baker, The Press