Culture

A Venetian Gothic facade adorned with banners for the 2026 Venice Biennale, in Venice, Italy, on Feb. 25, 2026.
Culture

What's on at the Venice Biennale? Russian soft power

by Kate Tsurkan

In the fifth year of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, the Russian pavilion is set to return to the Venice Art Biennale with a “musical festival come to life” that serves as “a space for dialogue and exchange.” The pavilion was effectively canceled in 2022 after the artists and curator chosen to represent Russia withdrew in protest of the invasion. At the time, the organizers of the Biennale released a statement praising the decision and condemning “all those who use violence to prevent

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The success of Ukraine's drone industry, explained

The Kyiv Independent’s Kollen Post sits down with Oleksandr Yakovenko, founder of TAF Industries, to discuss how his company went from wartime volunteer logistics to becoming one of Ukraine’s largest drone manufacturers.

Loss and loneliness in a contemporary Moldovan classic

From the early pages of "The Summer My Mother Had Green Eyes," we are swimming in the protagonist Aleksy's grief. The story begins at a point in his late teenage years when he "hated (his mother) more than ever," and could have "killed her with a thought." She is not a source of love and strength in his life — that is, the woman who gave him life — but of utter repulsion and shame. Moldovan-Romanian author Tatiana Țîbuleac's novel, recently translated from Romanian by Monica Cure and published

About Culture

Our reporting on literature, films, art, and traditions from Ukraine and the latest news on culture in Eastern Europe.

Ukrainian culture
Ukrainian culture has survived centuries of Russian attempts to appropriate Ukrainian art, silence Ukrainian artists, and erase the Ukrainian language. Modern Ukrainian writers, filmmakers, and musicians — some of whom are serving on the front lines — continue to develop Ukrainian culture and fight for Ukraine’s future.
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