Russian War Crimes

Russian War Crimes
An exhibition documenting Russia’s atrocities committed in Ukraine

The Ukrainian Institute of America
2 East 79th Street, New York, NY 10075
Tel. (212) 288-8660
www.ukrainianinstitute.org

NEW YORK, NY— The Office of the President of Ukraine, the Victor Pinchuk Foundation and the Ukrainian Institute of America announce “Russian War Crimes,” an exhibition documenting Russian war crimes committed in Ukraine, providing evidence of the horrific reality of Russia’s war against Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.

“Russian War Crimes” begins with an expansive map of Ukraine, assembled in cooperation with the General Prosecutor of Ukraine, that indicates all independently verified war crimes and victims registered to date. The exhibition continues with a series of documentary photographs taken from all regions of Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. They depict images of atrocities accompanied by individual accounts describing these crimes. While addressing only a fraction of known brutal and inhuman crimes, these photographs transform anonymous statistics into real identities, affording some victims a posthumous platform to have their silenced voices heard.

At the center of the exhibition, a monumental video installation combines 4,683 verified photographs as evidence of war crimes, created in cooperation with leading contemporary Ukrainian artist, Oleksii Say. While the images pulse on the screen, audio clips of Russian soldiers, boasting of their atrocities on intercepted telephone calls, are heard in the background.

Ultimately, “Russian War Crimes” demonstrates the systematic iniquities against civilians which have been central to Russia’s assault on Ukraine.

“Russian War Crimes” was first shown at the Russian War Crimes House, the former Russia House, in Davos during the World Economic Forum in May 2022. In June, it opened in NATO headquarters in Brussels, and also at the PinchukArtCentre in Kyiv, where it will remain until October 2022. It opened last week at the European Parliament in Brussels. This exhibit has been met with widespread recognition and acclaim.

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The destruction, civilian suffering, the deadening silence that follows the detonation of bombs, the mass killings in Bucha and other Ukrainian cities will leave no visitor indifferent. These photographs are testimony to the sacrifice of Ukrainians, in the name of our collective freedom.
– Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament

This [exhibition] is painful evidence of the war crimes committed in Ukraine and forms the evidentiary base, the reality, of this bloody war which is aimed at, not only denying Ukrainian statehood, not only taking over Ukrainian lands, but to destroy Ukrainians as a people, as a nation. We need to disclose these crimes and all the perpetrators should be brought to justice, all murderers should be brought to justice.
– Denys Shmyhal, Prime Minister of Ukraine

Our goal is a special tribunal and legal retribution. The more active and united we all are, the faster Europe will achieve this result. The Russians must be held accountable for individual atrocities, but the leadership must also be brought to justice. The reaction of the international community to Russian aggression against Ukraine was extremely soft in 2014, which led to a new bloody war. We need to create a new framework for international security.
– Andriy Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine

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The project is presented by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation and PinchukArtCentre in partnership with the Office of the President of Ukraine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers.

Public exhibition hours:
Daily from Thursday, September 22 to Sunday, October 2, 2022 from 12:00 – 6:00PM. Exhibition entry is free to the public.

For media information:
Please contact the Ukrainian Institute of America at media@ukrainianinstitute.org