The resonant destruction of a mosaic beloved by Lvivians on the demolished 'Okean' store makes one think about preserving examples of monumental art. Many mosaic pictures bear no communist symbols. Unique, spectacular frescoes are being ruined by spiritlessness and mismanagement.
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| Pavlohrad. Dnipropetrovsk region. Mosaic panel. Shevchenko Street, 120 |
The technique of decorating walls, facades and paths with uniform particles of stones, shells or multicoloured glass originated in the 3rd millennium BC.
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| Lviv. Mosaic 'Friendship of Peoples'. Author — Volodymyr Patyk |
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| Morshyn, Lviv region. Mosaic on the facade of a mud-and-water clinic |
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| Pavlohrad. Dnipropetrovsk region. Mosaic panel. Soborna Street, 58 |
The masters of Constantinople and Ancient Rome created masterpieces of mosaic art, adorning majestic cathedrals and palaces with them. On the territory of Kyivan Rus, mosaic appeared in the 10th century with the adoption of Christianity. The floor mosaic of the Church of the Tithes and the wall frescoes of St. Sophia Cathedral are considered masterpieces of ancient art in Ukraine.
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| Cherkasy. Mosaic panel. Residential building. Shevchenko Boulevard, 197 |
The method of laying from small particles gained particular popularity in the second half of the 20th century. In every city, public buildings, educational institutions, residential houses and industrial premises were decorated with depictions of genre scenes, historical events and stages of industrialisation.
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| Truskavets, Lviv region. Mosaic on the facade of a house of culture |
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| Pavlohrad. Dnipropetrovsk region. Mosaic panel. School No. 17 |
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| Sokal. Lviv region. Residential building. Sheptytsky Street, 59 |
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| Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi. Odesa region. Mosaic panel. Hotel. Shevchenko Street, 1 |
The development of Soviet street art was gaining momentum, and the wall panels were meant to influence the population ideologically and aesthetically.
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| Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi. Odesa region. Mosaic panel. Post office. Pershotravneva Street, 70 |
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| Mezhova. Dnipropetrovsk region. Mosaic panel. House of culture |
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| Kramatorsk. Donetsk region. College. Mashynobudivnykiv Boulevard, 40 |
The popularity of intercity bus service prompted artists to decorate bus stops using mosaic, taking into account the specifics of the region. In bad weather, it is much more comfortable to wait for public transport in a colourful pavilion. Especially picturesque small architectural objects, decorated with mosaic ornaments, embroidery patterns and pysanky, are found in Western Ukraine. The eastern regions do not lag behind, illustrating on a stop pavilion a representative of one of the most difficult professions.
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| Hirnyk. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Bus stop |
Mosaic art is a huge layer of culture in which scientific discoveries, sporting records and labour achievements are recorded.
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| Kramatorsk. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Mashynobudivnykiv Boulevard |
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| Sloviansk. Donetsk region. Chemical-Mechanical Technical College. Mosaic panel. Tsentralna Street, 41 |
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| Kostiantynivka. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel 'To the Conquerors of Space — Glory!'. Kosmonavtiv Boulevard, 6 |
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| Rivne. Mosaic panel. Instrument Equipment Plant |
The most tender and touching works are dedicated to family and motherhood.
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| Bakhmut. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Children's home. Vasyl Pershyn Street, 13 |
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| Donetsk. Mosaic panel. Artem Street, 76 |
An especially popular subject is professions.
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| Sloviansk. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Railway depot |
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| Bakhmut. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Residential building. Vasyl Pershyn Street, 1 |
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| Bakhmut. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Residential building. Vasyl Pershyn Street, 3 |
Some artists prefer to create not motley, multicoloured carpets, but works in two or three colours.
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| Donetsk. Mosaic panel. Artem Street, 76 |
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| Sloviansk. Donetsk region. Chemical-Mechanical Technical College. Mosaic panel. Tsentralna Street, 41 |
One of the main advantages of mosaic is durability. The pictures do not lose their colouring under the scorching rays of the sun, but it is important to create a reliable base.
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| Mezhova. Dnipropetrovsk region. Mosaic panel. House of culture |
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| Kramatorsk. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Centre for Extracurricular Activities. Parkova Street, 12a |
Unfortunately, the construction of dormitory districts in industrial cities did not provide in the budget for creating a solid base for the wall frescoes.
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| Kostiantynivka. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel 'To the Conquerors of Space — Glory!'. Kosmonavtiv Boulevard, 4 |
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| Kostiantynivka. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel 'To the Conquerors of Space — Glory!'. Kosmonavtiv Boulevard, 8 |
The mosaic canvases need restoration, but it is often difficult to determine to whom they belong.
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| Myrtiuky, Lviv region. Mosaic on an abandoned restaurant building |
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| Donetsk. Livoberezhna Street. Mosaic panel by a motordrome |
The spectacle is even more depressing when the labour of artists is barbarically destroyed by spiritlessness and by those who think only of their own well-being.
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| Melitopol. Zaporizhzhia region. Mosaic panel. Teaching building of the agrarian academy |
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| Sloviansk. Donetsk region. Mosaic panel. Dobrovolsky Street |
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| Drohobych. Lviv region. Mosaic panel. Music School No. 2. Lesya Ukrainka Street, 41 |
One recalls the case when, in 2002 in Donetsk, during the redesign of buildings the builders almost destroyed the panel 'Bird-Woman' by the Ukrainian artist and human-rights defender Alla Horska. Thanks to the protection of the public organisations the Union of Ukrainian Women and 'Prosvita', the most beautiful work of the talented Master was saved.
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| Donetsk. Postyshev Street, 119. Mosaic panel 'Bird-Woman'. |
Another unique work of Alla Horska, in co-authorship with a group of Ukrainian artists, is several mosaic pictures with an area of 180 square metres on the teaching buildings of School No. 5 in Donetsk. On the panel 'Prometheus', against the background of the Universe, flowers and space satellites, a miner and a metallurgist are depicted with flame in their hands — a symbol of coal and molten metal.
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| Donetsk. School No. 5. Mosaic panel 'Prometheus' |
Other colourful canvases — 'Life', 'Water', 'Earth', 'Fire', 'The Depths' and 'Space' — are presented on the ends of the teaching buildings. In 2012 the ensemble of mosaics was included in the State Register of Monuments of Ukraine as an object of cultural heritage of national significance.
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| Donetsk. School No. 5. Complex of mosaics |
There is almost no hope of saving these distinctive works of monumental art. In recent years other kinds of wall paintings have been gaining popularity, while mosaic pictures are increasingly falling apart; they are covered with siding or removed from the wall surfaces altogether.
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| Lviv. Pohulianka Park. A destroyed panel on the building of a demolished winery |
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| Donetsk. A destroyed mosaic depicting fairy-tale characters in the ruined 'Little Red Riding Hood' cinema |
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