Varvara Uhlik

The artist’s childhood was a blend of joy and discipline, moments of freedom, climbing trees and enjoying her mother’s sour cherry varenyky, intertwined with the strict, lingering structures and Soviet values. The weight of this past, still carried by family, teachers, and community, shaped her youth. Despite the Soviet Union’s dissolution, the oppressive influence of Russia endures, now magnified by the war that has forced Uhlik away from her home. 

Through newly staged photographs and digitally manipulated family archives, Uhlik de-constructs and re-constructs fragments of her past, re-contextualising them as she redefines her identity, femininity, and cultural heritage. This project explores how memories are preserved, distorted, and altered over time – serving both as a personal introspective reflection and as a portrayal of an entire generation coming of age in the post-Soviet world. While addressing generational traumas, it also reclaims Ukrainian identity from the shadows of Russian colonialism by acknowledging the beloved, yet Russified childhood.