The Road to Victory

Marking the coming 70th anniversary of the start of Ukraine’s liberation from the Nazis, the Donetsk Military History Museum of the Great Patriotic War has launched an integrated exhibition “The Road to Victory.” Most exhibits have come from the private collection of Petro Svitlytsky from Mariupol. Pictures taken by the famous frontline correspondent Yukhym Komm supplement the unique collection of militaria. Many of the photographs displayed have become exemplary for the art of photojournalism.

“In our view, an exhibition of uniforms and ammunition of the era is a perfect match for Komm’s photographs that chronicle his path as a photographer throughout the entire war,” the Military History Museum of the Great Patriotic War’s director Olha Zahoruiko told us, “while the combination itself has become the starting point in the cycle of events dedicated to the liberation of Ukraine from the Nazis.”

Building on the theme of the visual arts, the Donetsk Local History Museum is hosting an exhibition of photographs by Hryhorii Ostrovsky. Ostrovsky served as a tanker throughout the war, photographed his comrades’ everyday life on the frontlines in between military operations, thus capturing one of the most significant events in world history. These works stand out in a special way, bereft of the professional photographer’s cold balance, but giving voice to a soul that reflects the longing for youth sacrificed to win peace.