Why Ukrainian museums envy the Lviv Polytechnic University

The Day’s photo exhibit, which was launched on April 26 at the Lviv Polytechnic National University, attracted an incredible number of Lviv dwellers to the grand opening, as we have already informed our readers. It was certainly not an instant interest, but a systematic one. Firstly, there are many local inhabitants among the readers, fans, and partners of The Day. Secondly, Den’s Summer School of Journalism gets a lot of participants from the Lion’s City. And finally, The Day’s Library’s new books are presented here for the first time, at the Publishers Forum. Therefore, it was quite logical that during the three weeks our 150-photo collection was present at the Lviv Polytechnic University, the “pilgrimage” to the exhibition never stopped. These days the museums all around Ukraine could envy the Lviv Polytechnic.

Photo exhibits are just one of many forms of cooperation between The Day and this university.

“Holding conferences for faculty members and student community to which we invite Den/The Day’s editor-in-chief Larysa Ivshyna are important for us,” said director of the International Institute of Culture, Education, and Relations with Diaspora (IIEC) of the National University Lviv Polytechnic Iryna KLIUCHKOVSKA. “These are the roundtable meetings, where the young people get a chance to discuss issues that concern them, and receive the spiritual nourishment. The things Ivshyna talks about are the true guidelines for them. I think that a breakthrough happened at this year’s meeting with The Day at the Lviv Polytechnic University. The paper’s new initiative, the humanitarian program “Self-education On-line” was presented. The alertness, which prevailed among the students for they do not have the opportunity to communicate with media representatives often, now disappeared. Students bombarded Ivshyna with questions. I think that in the future we will change the format of the meetings, we shall conduct them in a more pragmatic form of questions and answers.

“It was a great honor for us that The Day entrusted the presentation of The Power of the Soft Sign to us at the last year’s Publishers Forum,” Kliuchkovska continues. “Many of our teachers bought a copy of this publication. I am pleased that this book appeared in the university’s book stalls. Perhaps, the students are not yet used to the fact that you can buy The Day’s books as well as the newspaper itself in the university’s bookstores, but I think that starting a new day with reading The Day will soon become a good habit of our students.”

By the way, according to the saleswoman that works in the bookshop in the main building of the Lviv Polytechnic, the edition of The Power of the Soft Sign was sold out quickly while The Day’s photo exhibit was there. “We have ordered more of those books from the editorial office,” the woman assured.

The IIEC actively promotes The Day among a broader audience: recently the institute staff members presented a certificate for a monthly subscription to The Day on the basis of the Trushivske Pero contest, which was dedicated to artist Ivan Trush, a well-known figure in the history of Ukrainian and world art in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A few days later they will speak of The Day in Chervonohrad, during the action that will mark the 60th anniversary of the Vistula Operation (as a reminder, the book Wars and Peace, or Ukrainians and Poles: Brothers/Enemies, Neighbors from The Day’s Library was recently published for the third time).

Head of Youth Policy and Social Development Department of the National University Lviv Polytechnic Volodymyr ZALUTSKY shared his impressions from The Day’s photo exhibition, “Sometimes the hall was so full of visitors it just got dark in there.” Zalutsky assured us that about 150 to 200 people visited the exhibition every day.

“The visitors of the exhibition were fascinated by the fact that such a wonderful event has been taking place in the Lviv Polytechnic for four years in a row now,” Zalutsky said.

Zalutsky himself favored a few photos. For the most part, those were the photos of his native city.

“It was hard for me, as well as for the majority of the visitors, to determine which photo was the best, because all of them deserve attention. According to the voting, the tastes are very different, each photograph found its supporters,” said Zalutsky.

However, it was still possible to determine the winner. The first place was won by the photo Admirer by Valeria Soloviova (Kyiv). The second and third places were shared by Holy Mother Wearing the Crown of Thorns by Igor Satsyk (Lutsk) and Under the Snow by Volodymyr Falin (Kyiv). In addition, many votes were given to the photo Hands by Vladyslav Musiienko that highlighted today’s pressing issues, and photographs A New Crane Grew Up, At Easter, and The Guard of Honor. By the way, here is a quote from the guest book, which demonstrates a deep perception of the photo exhibition by the guests: “I was especially impressed by the photo Hands. It should be placed on the billboards all over Ukraine. Perhaps, such visual aid would help Ukrainians think about the future they are choosing (S. Kulikhovsky).”

Actually, to “help think about” is the main task of The Day’s photo exhibition, whether it is taking place in Lviv, Kyiv, or Donetsk.

IMPRESSIONS

Yurii BOBALO, Rector, National University Lviv Polytechnic, professor:

“This is not the first time this exhibition is held at the Lviv Polytechnic, and I always look at the photos presented by The Day with great attention and admiration. Sincerity of emotions is what attracts me in those pictures the most. You can feel the positive energy coming from the photos. It is important that not only hundreds of teachers and students visited the exhibition, but guests of the Lviv Polytechnic as well. I am sure that all of them received a lot of pleasure from viewing the pictures, just as I did. I will say it once again: kindness and emotional sincerity of the pictures are the huge success of The Day newspaper. And I will always gladly welcome all of The Day’s initiatives.”

Iryna KLIUCHKOVSKA, director, International Institute of Culture, Education, and Relations with Diaspora, National University Lviv Polytechnic:

“It seems that Ukraine has come to our university along with The Day’s photos. Thank you for giving us a chance to see it from such wonderful perspective once again. Thank you for letting us see how dreamy, happy, and anxious our country is. It is hurting, and yet it is full of optimism. And the most important, we felt that we are a part (an integral part!) of the whole planet and these people in particular, who are so terrifically dear to our hearts. It is important that the exhibition motivates us to act, to do something, no matter if the deed is big or small. Your wings grow by themselves. You understand that you have no right to give up. You have to move forward stubbornly and persistently, learn for yourself and discover for those near you the terra incognita, unknown land, the name of which is Ukraine.”