In Kyiv, the exhibition “Soledar. Salt. War” about the history of a small, flourishing city in the past, where the occupiers came, and the history of the defenders who defend the country in Donetsk region.
The exhibition features more than fifty photos from the city of Soledar by photographer Oleksandr Parkhomenka and Iryna Rybakova, press officer of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade “Kholodny Yar” of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The first part of the exhibition is dedicated to the peaceful Soledar, which Oleksandr Parkhomenko recorded in photographs – the facilities of the Artemsil enterprise, the underground salt mines, the process of salt extraction, macro photos of salt crystals.
“Visitors will see episodes from the life of a peaceful city in 1993. These pictures were created over three months. Then I could spend a day on the frame – the work was extremely exciting and interesting. The mines of Soledar and the city itself made an extraordinary impression on me – an absolutely magical place that I fell in love with, the people who worked there, and the salt itself. What captivated me from the first moment was the volume of human labor and the scale of salt extraction there,” said Oleksandr Parkhomenko.
In the second part of the exhibition, Iryna Rybakova’s photos from the city already destroyed by the war are presented: portraits of Ukrainian soldiers – defenders of Soledar, artillery salvos during the battle, houses destroyed by the Russians. Iryna Rybakova took many pictures in the breaks between “arrivals”, when it was possible to leave the shelter even for a short time.
More will be told about the exhibition at the opening:
– Ihor Poshivaylo, general director of the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity;
– Volodymyr Tylishchak, Acting Chairman of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance;
– Oleksandr Movchan, Deputy General Director of the Donetsk Regional Museum of Local Lore;
– Volodymyr Nyzienko, head of the communications department of SE “Artemsil”.
The list of speakers is being updated.
The exhibition will last until June 11.
For the first time, the exhibition “Soledar. Salt. War’ was shown in the French city of Agen on the anniversary of the large-scale invasion on February 24. In Ukraine, the exhibition was exhibited in Pokrovsk, Donetsk region.
Organizers: Donetsk Regional Museum of Local Lore, National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity.
Oleksandr Parkhomenko is a photographer from Kramatorsk, member of the National Union of Photographic Artists of Ukraine, author of photo exhibitions.
Iryna Rybakova is a public relations officer of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade “Kholodny Yar” from Kyiv.
