Culture

The Hidden Canon: Discover Ukrainian literary classics

A Kyiv Independent project backed by the Ukrainian Institute

Ukrainian InstituteLearn more
'Hemingway Knows Nothing': Ukraine's writers are redefining literature of war
Culture

'Hemingway Knows Nothing': Ukraine's writers are redefining literature of war

by Kate Tsurkan

When war, loss, and unimaginable suffering become routine, a book can offer a kind of lifeline — especially one by a writer who has lived through such an ordeal and tried to make sense of it. At the start of Russia’s full-scale war, some Ukrainians speculated if they’d see the rise of their own Ernest Hemingway: a writer whose books would not only capture the experience of a generation but come to define it. Yet it soon became clear that the old paradigms of war literature no longer spoke to t

News Feed

Why Russia escalates attacks on Ukraine’s businesses, explained

Russia has sharply escalated its attacks on Ukrainian businesses, striking supermarket distribution centers, postal facilities, gas stations, warehouses, railway infrastructure, industrial plants, and Black Sea ports. The Kyiv Independent’s Dominic Culverwell sits down with Hlib Vyshlinsky, executive director of the Kyiv-based Center for Economic Strategy, to discuss why Russia is increasingly targeting Ukraine’s civilian economy — and what the campaign could mean for businesses, consumers, and

Germany's Kremlin-friendly AfD eyes historic election win

Germany could get its first far-right state government since World War II — and Ukraine has reasons to follow it closely. The Alternative for Germany's (AfD) potential victory in Saxony-Anhalt's election on Sept. 6 will not only send a chilling signal to the federal state's 39,000 Ukrainians but also shake the mainstream parties' efforts to keep the Moscow-friendly party out of power. Polling at 41%, the AfD's local branch — classified by the German security service as "confirmed far-right ext

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.
News Feed