On November 24, Google together with the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, with the support of Ukraine’s First Lady, Olena Zelenska, presented the online-space of Ukrainian culture on the Google Arts & Culture platform – “Ukraine is Here”.
The project was implemented thanks to the partnership between Google and the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, as well as 10 partners who participated in the creation of the Ukrainian section of the Google Arts & Culture platform, including: the National Art Museum of Ukraine, the National Center of Folk Culture “Ivan Honchar Museum”, the Museum of Theater, Music and Cinema of Ukraine and etc.
On its own page, Ukrainian culture is represented by four sections: Culture, Architecture, Art and Nature.
From now on, people from different countries will be able to explore authentic and interactive stories about Ukrainian culture, visit virtual tours and get acquainted with the most iconic works of Ukrainian artists in 6 virtual exhibition spaces.
With the help of augmented reality technology in the Google Arts & Culture application – view more than 40 incredible 3D models, including St. Sophia Cathedral, Palanok Castle and the National Opera of Ukraine. Some objects which physical counterparts were damaged or destroyed by Russian shelling, such as the bell tower of the Assumption Cathedral in Kharkiv, are also available on the platform.
Ukrainian seasonal folk rites and holiday traditions, Ukrainian traditional cuisine, Easter egg making, folk songs, crafts, fascinating landscapes, biosphere reserves and much more – “Ukraine is Here” anywhere in the world!
Oleksandr Tkachenko, Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, emphasized that thanks to culture, strong narratives are created, which are an effective communication tool on the cultural and informational fronts.
“Now you can google the culture of Ukraine in Google. We present the project in turbulent times. When special attention is drawn to our brave, powerful, modern state. Ukraine is Here is an extremely powerful project that is the result of fruitful cooperation, true synergy of teams – Google Arts & Culture, our Ministry, state agencies, many museums, nature reserves, and individual experts. New opportunities to tell about Ukrainian culture on a large scale, interestingly and in a modern digital language, as it is done on the Google Arts & Culture platform, is another of our joint victory“, underlined Oleksandr Tkachenko.
“During the months of the war, we have more than 500 damaged or destroyed museums, historical buildings, and temples. All this was created by generations of Ukrainians for new generations. So, it immediately became clear that we need to save not only our people, but also our culture and art from the invasion. Our culture is not only ours. This is the heritage of the entire civilized world. When one country loses cultural values, the whole world loses them too. So let’s save, multiply, watch and admire – google Ukrainian culture – and, thus, enrich the world,” called on the First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska.
In her turn, the Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Policy, Anastasia Bondar said that cooperation with Google Ukraine began in 2017 as part of the “Authentic Ukraine” project. According to her, more than 5 years of joint work became the basis for creating a separate section dedicated to Ukraine on Google Arts & Culture.
“Today, more than ever, we want Ukraine to be close to us wherever we are, and thanks to this section on Google Arts & Culture, we strive to create an unforgettable, unique digital experience that unites artists and partners, with the aim of preserving and promoting Ukrainian culture, art, architecture and nature,” said Anastasia Bondar.
Director of Google Arts & Culture Amit Sood thanked everyone who contributed to the creation of the Ukrainian online space and emphasized that “Ukraine is Here” is only the beginning of the Ukrainian project on the international platform.
“We are proud of today’s launch. We have been very fortunate to work with the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine and our other partners for five years and relentlessly move towards one goal – to make Ukrainian culture more accessible to everyone in any corner of the world. And thanks to these people today, despite all the challenges we face, we can present new content, new stories, and new artists to the world audience. And this is just the beginning,” said Amit Sood, Director of Google Arts & Culture.
For reference. Google Arts & Culture is a platform that collects digital versions of works of art and various cultural objects from more than 2,000 cultural institutions from 80 countries around the world. The platform hosts 6 million artifacts (including photographs, videos, manuscripts, and other documents of art, culture, and history), more than 400,000 artworks, and more than 10,000 digital exhibitions.
The “Ukraine is Here” project was implemented thanks to the partnership between Google and the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine and 10 other partners who joined the creation of the Ukrainian section of the Google Arts & Culture platform, including: the National Art Museum of Ukraine, the National Center of Folk Culture “Ivan Honchar Museum” , Museum of Theater, Music and Cinema of Ukraine, etc.
