Best of 2022: Architecture and design fight for Ukraine. Above: Bohdan Khmelnytsky Monument, Kyiv, with “Re:Ukraine Monument” shelter – Image by balbek bureau.
Architecture, Design – On the night of February 24, 2022, Russia attacked and militarily invaded Ukraine. “That night, I got petrified with terror. In 5 minutes, I was packing an emergency bag. We called our relatives to check if they were alive,” fashion designer Irina Dzhus told Archipanic. That was over 300 days ago. Since then, every day – including Christmas Eve – Russia’s unjustifiable war destroyed cities, purposely killing thousands of civilians, and with a rippling and disrupting effect on the world economy. Ukraine bravely reconquered part of the occupied territories, also thanks to military, economic, and humanitarian international support. But the end of the war is far from over.
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Ukraine war – Photo by the SAY NOT TO WAR image collection. нет войне (No to war) written on an abandoned vehicle in Kharkiv.
Designers and architects have been playing a vital role in rebuilding, and protecting cities, bringing hope, raising awareness, and practically sorting everyday war emergencies. We selected six projects rebuilding communities spaces, celebrating the country’s heritage and spirit, mending minds, and inspiring.
Irina Dzhus’ Evacuated’ fashion collection
DZHUS Phisique SS22 fashion collection. Photos by Alexey Ponomarev. Styling by Irina Dzhus.
Ukrainian fashion designer Irina Dzhus developed an ‘evacuated’ collection developed from garments salvaged from a single emergency suitcase. Part of the sales profit of the ethical and cruelty-free Spring-Summer 2022 collection was donated to the Ukrainian Army and animal shelters for abandoned pets. Named Physique, the collection is characterised by dramatic, androgynous silhouettes crafted in materials such as ribbed wool and crumpled organza. Read more…
balbek bureau rebuilds Ukraine, one neighbourhood at a time
Re:Ukraine by balbek bureau – Image by balbek bureau.
“Fortunately, it is possible to take away one’s house, but never one’s dignity,” says Slava Balbek, founder of Kyiv-based practice balbek bureau. The studio developed a modular and scalable temporary housing scheme able to provide a decent home to displaced Ukrainians. Titled RE:Ukraine, the housing scheme comprises affordable, ready-to-set up, and quick-to-deploy timber-frame boxes that can be assembled in multiple layouts to create residential sections and neighbourhoods. Read more…
balbek bureau’s protection system for endangered monuments
Kharkiv Indipencence Monument with REUkraine. Monument shelter – Image via IG by @balbekus.
balbek bureau expanded its Re:Ukraine project with a modular, easy-to-install, and fast-to-mount protection system protecting monuments “from damage by blast, debris, bullets, or fire meeting also a number of other requirements.”. The solution provides “a standardized solution that would allow volunteers to quickly design a shelter for any monument, regardless of its size.” The studio founder Slava Balbek told Archipanic. Read more…
Faina Gallery celebrates Ukrainian crafts and design
‘Stepping on Ukrainian Soil’ exhibition by FAINA Gallery – Photos by James Harris. Courtesy of Design Miami/ Basel.
At Design Miami/ Basel, FAINA Gallery has presented the Stepping on Ukrainian Soil exhibition, “reinterpreting our country’s heritage and crafts through contemporary design,” Ukrainian-born gallery founder Victoria Yakusha told Archipanic. A handwoven, 2.5-meter tapestry with layered texture recalls the rich and black-coloured Ukrainian soil. A series of primitive pieces of furniture in the shape of fictitious animals emerge in the form of hand-sculpted modern benches and stools. The exhibition highlights “the strong feeling of belonging with our own soil in these terrible times.” Read more…
NOOM crafts a chair with wartime camouflage nets
Gropius Low Chair Military Edition – Photo by NOOM.
At London Design Festival, Ukrainian furniture brand NOOM presented the Gropius Low Chair Military Edition. Originally designed in peacetime, the seat was then dressed with a wartime camouflage net to highlight the ‘before’ and ‘after’ mindsets every Ukrainian has been dealing with since February 24. The design project highlights the role of designers since the Russian invasion. “The focus is on functional objects helping to solve problems in bomb shelters, temporary shelters, dugouts, temporary hospitals, and bombed houses.” Read more…
Opposite Office rethinks the Nord Stream gas pipeline
Nord Stream 3 by Opposite Office – © Opposite Office. Benedikt Hartl. Munich. 2022.
With the Nord Stream 3 visionary project, activist studio Opposite Office has reimagined the landing station of Nord Stream, the Russia-to-Germany Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline halted due to the war in Ukraine. The site is re-designed to become a center for international understanding, which also features a capsule hotel made from pipes. “Because only international cooperation and relationships will secure peace in the long-term.” Opposite Office told Archipanic. Read more…
DZHUS Phisique SS22 fashion collection. Photos by Alexey Ponomarev. Styling by Irina Dzhus.
Architecture and design fight for Ukraine – All photos: courtesy of the architects and designers.
Re:Ukraine by balbek bureau – Image by balbek bureau.
