
2021
Belarus, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine
WWII: Memory, rituals and myths. Critical Thinking Experience
The creation of conditions in which the critical thinkers of the post-socialist generation are heard.
Project Overview
The events and consequences of the Second World War are reflected in numerous works of art. Novels and stories, theater performances, paintings and musical works, films and documentaries were dedicated to the heroes and victims. The significance of such works for the formation of heroic images and war myths is enormous. They are used for very different purposes in schools and universities in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and Poland.
The politics of remembrance in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and Poland are primarily aimed at the post-socialist generation. This generation of citizens has access to alternative information and knowledge about the war that their peers in the Warsaw Bloc years could not even dream of. Have the members/representatives of this generation been able to take advantage of the greater freedom and wider access to information? Various studies indicate that the policy of heroizing the events of the war and the practice of making more and more new claims and accusations against neighbors is also very popular among many members of the post-socialist generation.
In the context of such policies and practices, the conditions are created for new conflicts, a new wave of militarization of post-socialist societies and the increasing popularity of radical right-wing ideologies.




Timeline
June 2021
Seminar in Brest
The project participants looked at examples of the representation of history and memories of the Second World War in municipal museums and works of art and learned something not only about the situation in Belarus, but also in Russia, Ukraine and Germany.
July 2021
Seminar in Odessa
The project participants spent three days learning about the experience of remembering the Second World War in the city of Odessa. Foreign participants and experts took part in the seminar in online format.
July 2021
Seminar in St.Petersburg
During the seminar, the project participants not only learned about research into the politics of memory in art, but also exchanged their own ideas and experiences in this area.
September 2021
International Autumn School in Tbilisi
“The Second World War in the language of art”
Project participants from Ukraine, Belarus and Russia talked about the rituals, discourses and content of the politics of remembrance of the Second World War in museums and memorial parks in Tbilisi and Gori, exchanged their own experiences and developed ideas for joint projects.