Awarding of the Order "For Courage"

Yesterday, the family of the fallen artist and chief sergeant Volodymyr Chornyi was posthumously awarded the Order "For Merit, III Degree." Pictured are his mother Lyudmyla Ivanivna with his sister Elena Silkina and his beloved partner Olena Biletska. My text in memory of Volodymyr will soon be published as part of a joint project by PEN Ukraine and The Ukrainians Media, "People of Culture Taken by the War." When I communicate with relatives, friends, and try to imagine/feel the person who died, I realize how much my heart opens. And also – how much we have lost. And that means – how much I have to do instead of those we have lost. "The need to transform pain into fuel is central to the new iconic Ukrainian film 'Pamfir' (2022), whose production designer Volodymyr Chornyi volunteered for the Armed Forces of Ukraine and died in battle in May 2023. Transforming pain into fuel is, obviously, one of the few ways for deeply wounded communities like ours to move forward, despite constantly bleeding wounds and the uncertain end of the war," writes the sensitive project curator Sasha Dovzhyk, who, in fact, drew me into all this.

Once, at a 12-hour performance by Danish artist Signa Köstler, I realized that I was actually afraid to empathize. Now, almost every day, I feel that reality has indeed forced me into compassion – at the cost of deaths and losses. Read the texts. These people are worth remembering.

Based on a post by Mariana Matveychuk.