Modernization through tradition

The past weekend saw the 12th Kraina Mrii held in Kyiv. The event has grown considerably over the years, and Oleh Skrypka, its founder, admits that musical part nowadays makes up to no more than half of the whole program. The other venues are: the Literature Stage; air balloon and kite grounds – the “Montgolfieria” and the “Air Dragon”; the Cossack Lawn; The Rope Climbing Park; The Children’s Playground; the Craftsmen Alley; the Dance Workshop; the grounds for Ethnic Fashion and Ethnic Floral Design. In total – there are a record breaking 40 diverse areas. And all around the place are hundreds of booths selling various ceramics, embroidery, books, and other wares. And also the countless cafes offering barbecues and many more dishes cooked here on the spot.

However most loyal supporters do remember the first festivals – having neither “random” people nor beer, but with exquisite and carefully selected musical program, memorable atmosphere and ... free entrance. Indeed, this year’s entrance fee, 200 hryvnias, is quite high, even when compared to previous years. However, it seemed not to have affected the visitor numbers. Similarly, that number remained high despite that this time the Kraina Mrii happened quite far from Kyiv center – at the National Museum Complex of Folk Architecture and Everyday Life of Ukraine in Pyrohiv.

KRAINA MRII IS A CONSTELLATION OF QUITE STANDALONE ENVIRONMENTS, OPEN TO MUTUAL COOPERATION

“The quality of Kraina Mrii remains unchanged,” asserted Skrypka. “In 2004, there area was completely devoid of litter after the festival was over. This is an unprecedented example! The people who come here are pure at heart, pure in their thoughts and deeds. And if you are free from ‘garbage’ on stage, the audience will be keeping it clean either. In 2004 I had no idea how the festival could evolve in the coming years. Then I was fascinated by the process itself, and that really had been a lot of fun. It was the union of very different people and organizations. We had many joint projects with Den newspaper. And it was always very nice to see how they were reflected on the newspaper pages and in the beautiful photos. I am convinced that one can only achieve something if there is a mutual support. Kraina Mrii is a constellation of quite standalone environments, which are open to mutual cooperation. They enrich each other, as well as the festival and visitors. I personally heard a lot of nice words here. It is very motivating. I am sure that Kraina Mrii encourages people to be creative, gives them new ideas.”

DEN’S AREA OFFERED EVERYONE A CHANCE TO ORDER OUR LATEST BOOK RETURN TO TSARHOROD, AS WELL AS TO BUY ISSUES OF DEN’S LIBRARY SERIES AND OUR GLOSSY SUPPLEMENT. IN ADDITION, IT TOOK JUST A FEW HOURS FOR VISITORS TO SNAP ALL DEN’S CLUB KERCHIEF

Over the years, the festival significantly contributed to the rise in the national consciousness of Ukrainians, encouraged them to engage in truthful Ukrainian history and culture, and cased the true popularity for ethnics. The people, who had been, among others, brought up spiritually by Kraina Mrii, became the vanguard of our country’s destiny. In 2004, these people made the Orange Revolution, later – the Revolution of Dignity. Many of them are now among the volunteers in the east of Ukraine. “Changes through which the country is going, had been already made at Kraina Mrii,” said Skrypka. “I remember how in 2004, just before the Orange Revolution, there was a mass performance of the national anthem. And now we already live in a different country. Kraina Mrii has always given a kind of momentum to the change, and simultaneously has been its indicator. A tree of Life is the symbol of the universe. It takes roots to the ground, draws information from the traditions and constantly develops, grows up. If a person does not know their roots, their history – they are ‘tumbleweed,’ which is very susceptible to manipulation (as it was done in times of the USSR). To reach the sun, one must have a strong foundation! We can develop and modernize only maintaining a great love and respect to our roots.”

“MUSIC IS THE BASIS OF EVERYTHING”

This year the three main stages of the festival received many famous artists. In addition to Vopli Vidopliasova, there were Boombox, TNMK, Zhadan and Dogs, Motor’rolla, AtmAsfera, Pikkardiiska Tertsia, Onuka, and others. “Despite the fact that the festival has grown substantially, music is still the basis of everything,” said Skrypka. “This year we have focused on local performers. Ukrainian rock, jazz, and electronic mainstream traditionally prepare their special projects for Kraina Mrii. And it is very nice of them, because it shows the amount of respect for our festival. Over the years, Kraina Mrii has breathed life into many beautiful musical projects. For example, the Mad Heads XL project, which was the special Kraina Mrii program of Mad Heads band, later became the main event in their program. Red Cardell, a Breton rock band from France, created a joint project with the Ukrainian band Hurtopravtsi, especially for Kraina Mrii. They later toured together all over Europe! On June 21, the last day of the festival, Vopli Vidopliasova presented their new ethno-electronic project featuring a DJ.”

OVER ITS 12-YEAR-LONG HISTORY, KRAINA MRII FESTIVAL HAS BECOME FOR MANY UKRAINIANS THEIR FIRST STEP TO LEARNING OUR HISTORY AND CULTURE. WE ARE NOW WITNESSING THE SECOND GENERATION GROWING UP WHICH WAS EDUCATED, IN PARTICULAR, BY THIS FESTIVAL

ON THE TECHNOLOGY OF DREAMS

Among the novelties of this year’s festival is also the “University of Dreams,” an intellectual discussion platform. Its participants were: Larysa Ivshyna, Den/The Day’s editor-in-chief; Serhii Datsiuk, philosopher; Oleksii Tolkachov, social activist, and others. “At our festival, we do not dream of something without a reason,” commented Skrypka. “We seek effective approaches; we delve into the technology of dreams. ‘University of Dreams’ is intended to tell the visitors how to create their own effective projects. Ukrainians are creative people. And we must learn how to pursue our dreams. And I speak primarily of social technologies.”

DEN’S AREA IN THE SPOTLIGHT

The area of Den newspaper is under the first number in the festival’s booklet. All visitors have the opportunity to buy books from our Library, including a novelty – Ukraine Incognita. TOP 25. In addition, anyone was able to subscribe to the newspaper or donate their books to the soldiers on the frontline and to the libraries in the east. Many people have already taken advantage of this opportunity. Also, the glossy supplement Route No. 1 was popular among the customers, as well the Ukraine or Little Russia pamphlet by Mykola Khvyliovy from “Armor-Piercing Political Writing” series, and Den’s club kerchief. Moreover, Kraina Mrii visitors were impatient to see the products already announced, such as the Return to Tsarhorod book.

TO BUILD A SUCCESSFUL FUTURE WITH AN EYE TO TRADITION IS THE PATH OF PROGRESS PROPOSED BY THE PARTICIPANTS OF KRAINA MRII

Not far from Den’s stand, a political prisoner of many years, Levko Lukianenko, Hero of Ukraine, presented his book. “Unfortunately, the level of national consciousness in Ukraine has never been high,” said Lukianenko. “Consider, for instance, the fact that in 23 years of independence, the decision-making on our TV has never been managed by Ukrainian patriots. Also, the ‘fifth column’ has always left a powerful impact. Realizing this, I tried to write something in my free time. There are essays on historical, philosophical themes, memories of my imprisonment. They are made to awaken the love for our land, to establish the value of our statehood and sovereignty, to spread the national idea. Kraina Mrii festival is a great opportunity to communicate with readers personally. People come here to exchange ideas, and to show themselves. Many came in vyshyvankas, wearing national symbols. All this contributes to the consolidation of the Ukrainian nation, to our mutual understanding, to the realization that we are the only people on this land. After all, Ukraine – is our land, we have always had all the rights for it under the natural law. And this knowledge gives us self-assurance, the confidence we need to overcome Moscow invaders and win the real independence for Ukraine!”