Pryluky has been hosting the Den Photo Exhibit for almost two weeks now. What’s new after we have left the city? “New people attend the exhibit every day, there are excursions for educational institutions, and the exhibit’s opening has received wide coverage on local TV channels. When my family and I attended the exhibit, the hall was full of both, adults and youngsters. Many people share their impressions in the guestbook and cast votes for the photograph they liked the most. I invited later my British American Tobacco Ukraine colleagues to the exhibit. They have an ocean of impressions. I am sure Pryluky residents will receive an enormous baggage of emotions for quite a long time in the two weeks of Den, for every photograph begets millions of opinions about our present day and future,” British American Tobacco Ukraine PR manager (production) Petro Bondarenko commented to The Day.
So, Pryluky residents continue to pleasantly surprise with their activity and a desire to see the professional and meaningful photos that show this country’s life in the past year. Meanwhile, we invite you to read the comments and impressions of some students at Chernihiv’s School of Young Journalists, who also sprang a pleasant surprise on us by specially coming to Pryluky from the oblast center.
“I WAS FULL OF QUITE STRONG EMOTIONS”
Liudmyla LESIK:
“The Den Photo Exhibit at the Pryluky Community Center showed me various sides of our society, such as politics, the counterterrorism operation, children, nature, and emotions. Each photograph expresses emotions so convincingly that my mood was also changing accordingly. Positive sentiments caused by seeing people’s and children’s smiles and nature would give way to pain and tears, when I watched pictures of the ATO zone or young crippled soldiers. These boys are my peers or even younger than I, but they have already seen the ‘black side’ and felt an incredible physical and psychological pain. Moreover, they must have understood that they’ve remained one on one with their woe. At the same time, there are faces of the politicians who play with human destinies and bodies as if they were dolls… I was full of quite strong emotions.
“What also struck me was Ivan Kapsamun’s story about our system of government. It became clear immediately that we live in a rotten system that has been built since Ukraine gained independence. Unfortunately, Ukrainians believe populists and thus give them all trump cards. Yet the goal the newspaper Den has set is the first and very important step in the struggle for a happy future of the independent state without war, poverty, and populism. I am sincerely grateful for emotions, high-quality photographs, and understanding of the political situation in Ukraine.”
“FUNNY, TRAGIC, AND TRUE LIFE LOOKED AT ME FROM ALL THE PHOTOGRAPHS”
Liubov SYLA:
“In my opinion, the photo exhibit ‘Family Album of Ukraine’ in Pryluky left nobody indifferent. The proof of this was inquisitive glances of visitors. Photo masters satisfied the taste of even the most fastidious esthetes and appreciators of things beautiful.
“The photographs also stirred up a whirlwind of emotions or even a real squall of various feelings – both joyful and sad – in me. For example, the photos Iron Lady and Two Little Hens make you smile against your will, while the ‘Return’ series causes stinging pain and sympathy. The picture Beside a Friend’s Grave even sent shivers down my spine – how precisely a human suffering is expressed! These things really excite, and photographs totally absorb you.
“I won’t say that other works did not move me. On the contrary, they did because life itself – funny, tragic, and true – looked at me from all the photographs. I thank everybody who was involved in creating such a ‘thinking’ atmosphere which seems to force us to ask ourselves: ‘And what have I done for the future of our country’?”
“WHEN THE EXHIBITION HALL’S DOOR SWUNG OPEN, WE FELT THE BREATH OF A DIFFERENT WORLD”
Anastasia SYPLYVETS:
“When the exhibition hall’s door swung open, we felt the breath of a different world. The photographs on the walls not only livened the monotonous interior – they were self-sufficient worlds full of their own, typical of them only, emotions. Every photo breathed life. You stand and look at a courageous soldier, the face of an old woman, or the radiant smile of a child, and you seem to see all this in reality – only just a few steps away. The photographs’ titles also added emotions. They seemed to emphasize the idea the photo’s author wanted to express. Everybody’s heart was full of the seething emotions about the small everyday-life scenes on the photos that left an imprint on the soul of each visitor.”
“I LIKED MANY PICTURES BUT WHAT STUCK IN MY MIND IS THE PHOTO YOUNG WINE”
Natalia IVASHCHENKO:
“On the one hand, I am short of words to express my emotions, but one glance is enough to go through the explosion of everything in the brain, soul, and heart.
“The Den Photo Exhibit makes you, against your will, jog your memory. It’s sort of slideshow in the brains, after which you come to understand that life itself, too, is replayed equally fast. Regretfully, sometimes dark people and events spoil photos on the pages of your personal gallery.
“I liked many pictures, but what stuck in my mind is the photo Young Wine. A little girl, wearing huge boots, indefatigably tramples on grapes. The first glance makes you smile, and the second one makes you think that this very generation will have to squeeze all kinds of things before it makes a delicious and heady wine.”
“DEN’S BOOKS ARE TOPICAL AS NEVER BEFORE”
Oleksandr NEMCHENKO:
“The Den Photo Exhibit in Pryluky left positive impressions only. A warm atmosphere created by the organizers and audiences was a good illustration that Ukrainians are really one big family.
“The contrast of photographs stunned me. Some aroused the feeling of regret, heartache, and sincere sympathy, while others, on the contrary, made you smile and inspired optimism.
“I thank everybody involved in organizing the photo exhibit for emotions and an opportunity to look at the present day from different angles. I am grateful to Ivan Kapsamun for a frank conversation during the ‘National Dialog’ debate.
“And special thanks to the newspaper Den for publishing the books that are topical as never before. In particular, everybody can find answers to the questions of today from outstanding intellectuals of the past, fighters for Ukrainian independence, on the pages of the ‘Armor-Piercing Political Writing’ series.”
“WHAT STRUCK ME THE MOST IS THE PHOTO GLOVES FOR MOM”
Nadia MYSHKO:
“I am where books are! Province is not a geographical notion, as Den’s editor-in-chief Larysa Ivshyna believes. The best photographs of the International Photo Competition “Den-2016” created incredible impressions. What struck me the most is the photo Gloves for Mom. The impression is that the photograph’s protagonist, an orphan boy, dreams of mother and is knitting gloves for her. The photograph, on which a soldier braids the hair of a girl, reminded me of the relationship with my brother who spent all of his childhood in a hospital and learned to braid girls’ hair there. When he came over, he said he would be braiding my hair before I went to school. The photo Iron Lady enraptured me because I myself know this kind of robust and hardworking elderly women. The meeting with Ivan Kapsamun, editor of the politics section, James Mace Prize winner, and compiler of the book “The Trap,” or A Case without a Statute of Limitations, inspired a hope that secrets have a way of getting out.”
“IT’S SO PLEASANT TO HEAR THE CROWD DISCUSS PHOTOGRAPHS”
Vira KURYKO:
“I must say I needed this trip. It just coincided with a period of my slight disappointment. This atmosphere, the people at the exhibition, and these photographs full of humaneness made an indelible impression on me. It’s so pleasant to hear the crowd discuss photographs and see everybody smile, go sad, and smile again.
“This kind of events is one more way to unite and speak about what is happening to us now.
“I am grateful to the organizers, to Ivan Kapsamun for a debate, and to the charming Ms. Natalia who was selling books!”
