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If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider supporting us as a member. Join Us KYIV and LVIV, Ukraine — On my first night in Kyiv, there was a far-off explosion. Russia had launched 53 Iranian-made Shahed drones and five cruise missiles at Ukraine.
Most were shot down, but one struck an industrial facility in Kyiv Oblast, on the outskirts of the city. For the next three weeks, as I visited exhibitions and met with artists, curators, and filmmakers in Kyiv and Lviv, I would hear the eerie sound of air raid sirens many times. Ukrainians have been hearing these sirens for two and a half years — and those in the East, for much longer — as they endured constant attacks.
Amid Russia’s full-scale invasion, however, I experienced a flourishing, vital, and purposeful art scene. Many artists in Kyiv are addressing the war full-on. I met with photographer Yana Kononov.
