Ukrainian Institute in Germany: Welcome!

The Ukrainian Institute’s first representative office abroad opened on 29 March in Berlin, Germany. Our G.ART Gallery team actively cooperates with contemporary Ukrainian artists. The opening of this institute is a big event for Ukrainians.

The Ukrainian Institute is a state institution established in 2017 and headquartered in Kyiv. It is managed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. The main tasks of the institute are to introduce Ukrainian culture to the international community, form a positive image of the country, and promote the Ukrainian language abroad. And specifically in Germany – establishing and developing sustainable relations between representatives of Ukrainian culture, science, civil society, and their German counterparts.  

The Ukrainian Institute is a state institution established in 2017 and headquartered in Kyiv. It is managed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. The main tasks of the institute are to introduce Ukrainian culture to the international community, form a positive image of the country, and promote the Ukrainian language abroad. And specifically in Germany – establishing and developing sustainable relations between representatives of Ukrainian culture, science, civil society, and their German partners.

In 2022, following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, that country’s culture has, surprisingly, made itself known loudly around the world. It is hard to imagine that a national culture is booming in a country whose large part has become a frontline and whose other regions are bombarded every day by missiles, drones, or artillery, but it is.

Sadly, many Ukrainian cultural figures went abroad in 2022 in search of asylum, but even this has a positive meaning – they have carried the news about Ukraine to all corners of the globe. And today Ukrainian art exhibitions, book launches, performances and spectacles, and concerts in different countries do not surprise anyone anymore. Perhaps this is the way it should be. Ukraine is fighting for its freedom and showing the world the treasures of its culture.

And now the Ukrainian Institute in Germany will be able to support those who are now engaged in art and science, shaping the image of the country and strengthening ties between people and institutions.

The opening ceremony at the Kesselhaus in der Kulturbrauerei was attended by politicians, journalists, public figures, and cultural figures from Germany and Ukraine. Welcoming speeches were made by Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Oleksii Makeiev, Commissioner for Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia of the German Foreign Ministry Matthias Lutenberg, Director of Europe and Eurasia programs of Open Society Foundation Anton Artemyev and General Coordinator of Ukrainian projects at Goethe-Institut Mark-Andre Schmachtel. The Institute’s plans were presented by director general Volodymyr Sheiko, executive director Solomiya Borschosch and the head of the Ukrainian Institute in Germany Kateryna Rietz-Rakul.