Exhibit: Destroyed Temples of Ukraine

The Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, in partnership with the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity (Museum of the Maidan) in Kyiv, Ukraine, is honoured to present Destroyed Temples of Ukraine at the  Ukrainian Museum of Canada – Alberta Branch. 

This is as part of their new exhibit, “Repression, Resistance and Nationhood: Ukrainian Nation-Building – A Historical Representation”.

The exhibit showcases milestones in Ukrainian history from the founding of Kyiv, to the present day. Destroyed Temples of Ukraine will serve as reminder of the current, ongoing situation in Ukraine.

Exhibit Information
Location: Ukrainian Museum of Canada - Alberta Branch
St. John’s Cultural Centre
10611 110 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T5H 1H7

Exhibit opening:
May 22nd | 7:00 p.m.

Open to the public
May 23 | 11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
May 24 | 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

This exhibit is free to view and is open to the public.

Since 24 February 2022, armed forces of the Russian Federation have ruined, damaged, and disrupted over 630 religious sites across Ukraine. They include an Orthodox cathedral with its steeple destroyed, a Jewish school struck by mortar shelling, and parish churches left almost totally flattened. This exhibit portrays just a few of these Ukrainian sacred sites and invites us to reflect on the loss of multicultural heritage and of cherished places of worship. 

Targeting historical monuments and cultural heritage sites is a war crime under international law, according to the Hague Convention. Most of the churches, mosques, and synagogues purposely attacked in the course of Russo-Ukrainian war have been in occupied Donetsk (at least 120) and Luhansk (more than 70) oblasts. The scale of destruction is also high in Kyiv oblast (70), where fierce battles were fought in defense of the capital, and in both Kherson and Kharkiv oblasts, with more than 50 destroyed religious buildings in each. But damaged religious sites are found across all of Ukraine, from Kherson in the south to Chernihiv in the north. 

In 2023 the Museum of the Maidan launched this major exhibition—Destroyed Temples of Ukraine—co-organized with the Kyivan Cave Monastery National Preserve, the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War, and the Heritage Emergency Response Initiative, displayed in the Refectory Church of the Kyivan Cave Monastery.

Most of the thirty-two photos displayed in this exhibit were taken during field research by the Maidan Museum to Ukrainian territories affected by Russia’s attacks. The English-language exhibit was created by the Maidan Museum and the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies as a part of CIUS’s “Religion and War in Ukraine” project, supported by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

The exhibit stands display QR-codes that provide information about the destroyed places of worship throughout Ukraine, including the buildings’ architecture and appearance before being attacked, media reports, and links to additional resources.

Read more about the exhibit. 

This English language exhibit is developed by the Maidan Museum/National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity in Kyiv and the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS) at the University of Alberta, and supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), and the Ukrainian Canadian Congress - Alberta Provincial Council.

For more information contact cius@ualberta.ca.

For media inquiries, or requests to host the exhibit, please contact: ciuscomm@ualberta.ca.