Friday 16 December 2016

Big Sites In Kiev

The city feels monumental, all hills, Baroque churches and odes to past triumphs. Pinnacle propaganda.

Peoples Friendship Arch. Made of titanium.


Sculptures at the base of the arch, depicting participants of the Pereyaslav Council of 1654 and Russian and Ukrainian workers holding up the Soviet Order of Friendship. Got all that?

In May 2016, the Ukrainian government announced it would be tearing down the monument, part of a program to wash the communist scar from the country.

Independence monument in the main square, Maidan. And hotel. The column was erected in 2001, commemorating the 10th anniversary of Ukraine's independence.


A wider look at Maidan. An example of Soviet modernist architecture. Can it be called the International Style when it was behind an Iron Curtain?

Ladies manning the dairy stalls at the central market.


Who knew, fabulous Art Nouveau buildings in the city?
Back in Maidan, a sculpture, all dressed up (partially).


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