The Ethnology Notebooks. 2026. № 2 (188), 498—505
UDK 7.036(477-25Львів)”19/20″
- Received: 17.02.2026
- Accepted: 15.03.2026
- Published: ??.??.2026
FORMATION OF ARTISTIC CENTERS IN LVIV AS A CULTURAL PHENOMENON OF THE SECOND HALF OF THE 20TH — EARLY 21ST CENTURY
GAVRYLIUK Borys
- ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3803-2441
- Doctor of Philosophy, Senior Lecturer
- of Higher Education Institution,
- Department of Graphics and Book Art,
- Lviv Polytechnic National University,
- 12, Stepana Bandery Str., 79013, Lviv, Ukraine,
- Contacts: e-mail: borisgavryljuk@gmail.com
SHEPET Tetiana
- ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-4046-5092
- Doctor of Philosophy, Senior Lecturer
- of Higher Education Institution,
- Department of Graphics and Book Art,
- Lviv Polytechnic National University,
- 12, Stepana Bandery Str., 79013, Lviv, Ukraine,
- Contacts: e-mail: tetiana.artlviv@gmail.com
Abstract. Introduction. In the article, the processes of formation of new artistic centers in Lviv during the second half of the 20th and the early 21st century are examined. The emergence of artistic groups is traced, and the activities of cultural hubs in the city are outlined, in particular «Shliakh», «KUM», as well as art spaces «Three Dots», «Decima», «Dzyga», «Museum of Ideas», and «Lviv Palace of Arts». The organization of exhibition projects such as «Revival», «Interdruk», «New Proposals».
Problem Statement. The object of the study is the artistic life of Lviv in the second half of the 20th and the early 21st century, specifically the processes of formation and functioning of new artistic centers, artistic groups, and exhibition institutions of the city.
Purpose.The purpose of the research is to outline the dynamics of the development of artistic centers that significantly influenced the artistic life of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, highlighting their role in shaping innovative practices and cultural transformations.
Methods. The research examines the conceptual foundations and institutional activities of Lviv’s key artistic centres — the groups «Shliakh», «KUM», and galleries «Dzyga», «Gerdan», «Museum of Ideas», «Lviv Palace of Arts» — and their contribution to the postmodern paradigm in Ukrainian fine art.
Results. The study demonstrates that Lviv artists have worked in line with contemporary trends, and since 1991, due to the expansion of international art contacts, interactions with European countries have acquired qualitatively new forms. The artistic centers and exhibition projects examined in the research significantly influenced the cultural and artistic life of Lviv.
Conclusions. The research findings demonstrate that since 1991, Lviv artists have actively engaged with international artistic discourse, fostering qualitatively new forms of cultural exchange with European institutions. The dynamics of key artistic centres — their conceptual foundations and exhibition practices — proved instrumental in shaping the postmodern paradigm within Ukrainian fine art of the late 20th — early 21st century.
Keywords: contemporary Ukrainian art, painting, drawing, graphic art, exhibition projects, creativity, artistic experiment and practice, synthesis.
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