Ukraine after the war The Re:Create Ukraine project creates a picture of the future of destroyed cities. We spoke with his curator

According to Oleksandr Smirnov, Re:Create Ukraine appeared in the first months of a full-scale war to instill in people's hope and show a picture of the future of Ukrainian cities. Designers from all over the world joined the project and showed their vision of a restored Ukraine.

— Oleksandr, tell us how the Re:Create Ukraine project appeared. When did it start and how was it invented?

— In March 2022, Viktor Andrusiv called me. He spoke about the importance of the fact that the entire information space consists of grief. We need to show hope, show that Ukraine will be restored. Then we came up with Re:Create. The main task of which was to connect the creators to create a picture of the future, to begin to restore the destroyed. Let not yet physically, but in the form of a fantasy, a drawing, a concept. We called it art therapy.

A team quickly gathered, which included Artem Gusev, Andriy Mishchenko, Anastasia Khadzhinova. The company of Olexander Eine helped us a lot with the site — guys of the highest professionalism. They made announcements very quickly and froze in anticipation. Then came the first project, and then more and more — from all over the world. This is real magic, because you get not just a drawing, but a kind of window into the future. What is made with love and, in most cases, at a very high quality level.

We have assembled a professional jury. I am very grateful to Dmitry Vasiliev, co-founder and chief architect of Archimatika, for helping to bring together such pros, as: Slava Balbek — architect and founder of balbek bureau; Volodymyr Nepiyvoda — architect, founder and head of commercial design studio YOD design lab; Yulian Chaplinsky is an architect, urbanist and public figure. We were also joined by international stars: UN Peace Medal winner and Cannes Lions Grand Prix winner Mark Vorde; Gensler, managing director of the world's leading architectural company, board member Jordan Goldstein.

The jury met twice and chose the best works. Each new application for us was like a ray of hope and inspiration in the sea of "zhurba". People began to switch to discussions about how the Ukraine of the future should be.

Railway station, Mykolaiv

Mykolaiv regional state administration

Kharkiv regional state administration

Apartment houses, Mariupol

Railway station, Trostyanets

Karazin National University, Kharkiv

— Why was it important to make participants in the project not only professional architects, but also all interested ones?

— Because everything suffers from wars. Moreover, creativity is not elitist or exclusive. We all participate in the creation of the ego.

— What will happen next with the design proposals placed on the site? Do any of them have the prospect of being implemented?

— All our offers are publicly available. We will be glad if they are implemented. But our main task was an information campaign — to hold a session of national art therapy. It is done.

— If you were told that one of the solutions presented on the site will definitely be implemented, you only need to choose. Which would you choose?

— I was born in Kharkiv. Every picture from Kharkiv takes my breath away.

School number 134, Kharkiv

Building in the historical part of Kharkiv

Residential building in Kharkiv

Bus station, Izyum

— Tell us a few words about yourself. What do you do and what role do you play in the project?

— I am a partner and co-owner of Tabasco creative company. In the Re:Create project, I play the role of a curator.

— Ukraine before and after the war: what, in your personal opinion, will be the three main differences?

— We all draw our own picture of the future. I would like to believe that Ukraine will become: a country of opportunities, a country of inclusiveness, a country of responsibility, where reputation and zero tolerance for corruption will be the basis of a new social contract.

Interview: Sergey Gutakovsky

2023