The Map of Ukraine in a Visual Environment

Olesia Herashchenko

Abstract

This article discusses the phenomenon of appearance of the contour of Ukrainian map as of 1991 in visual environment in dynamic (2000-2023), as the image metamorphosed in social meaning from kitsch to iconic and seems to have a strong massification effect in Ukraine. In the conditions that the country finds itself now, being in the midst of global social, political, safety turmoil, to bolster interpretations of this process now appears to be important, as it has a potential to influence behavior patterns and events interpretation in the foggy future. As the author introduces the possible causes for this particular image to gain such meaning over last year(s), she tackles the matters of emergence of a collective identityand scrutinizes a dominant narrative behind the phenomena, while staying within the theoretic framework of three themes for reasoning: visual archive, autotherapy and nostalgia.  Through the time, after the invasion in 2014, the map of Ukraine image appearance densed in a way that its contour became unavailable for “discussion”.  Despite the harshest conditions, under which this attitude condensed, the map contour of Ukraine has become a landscape on the common cognitive map, which seems to define Ukrainians now and to preserve its topicality and impact for generations to come.