“Project 24”: The Art Of Truth, Memory, And The Strength Of Ukraine's Spirit

In times of catastrophe and loss, art always serves not only as a witness but also as a prophet. It is capable not only of recording dramatic events but also of transforming pain into images that carry memory into the future. This is how Project 24 was born - a visual chronicle of war created by People's Artist of Ukraine Volodymyr Koziuk together with a team of artists. It is not just a series of paintings: it is a visual chronicle that has captured the trauma, courage, and spiritual strength of the Ukrainian people.

The origins of the project go back to the tragic day of February 24, 2022. The first painting, Invasion, became a painful reaction to the unprecedented blow to Ukraine. Every subsequent canvas was a cry of the soul, a response to the events of war: death, resistance, hope. This series, born out of the daily reality of war, grew into a large-scale artistic manifesto.

The first exhibition opened to the public on February 24, 2025, at the Vinnytsia Regional Art Museum - on the third anniversary of the invasion. Later, the project was exhibited at the Potocki Palace in Tulchyn and at the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, where it took on the role of cultural diplomacy and testimony to crimes against humanity. Symbolically, it was the walls of parliament that became the space where art voiced the people's truth.

The making of Project 24 took place under inhuman conditions. The artists worked to the sounds of explosions and falling drones, without electricity or heat, for 12 hours a day. In this work there is something primordial: art emerged not as a luxury, but as a necessity - as a means of survival and inner resistance. This is painting created on the edge of despair and faith.

The author and leader of the project was Volodymyr Koziuk, but Project 24 became a collective creation. It brought together Yevheniia Bozhko, Valeriia Kuzmenko, Olha Tiazhelova, and Olha Koziuk. They all joined forces for one purpose: to show the world the truth about Ukraine through the language of art.

This project proved that even in the hardest of times, art requires teamwork and solidarity. It is not born in a vacuum - it is the fruit of mutual trust, support, and sacrifice.

No great artistic phenomenon happens without those ready to support it financially and morally. Project 24 is also a story of patronage that became a form of service to culture and the nation.

Zinoviy Kozytskyi - the main patron of contemporary Ukrainian art, whose initiatives combine humanism and strategic vision. From opening the ZAG gallery to supporting wounded soldiers - his activity demonstrates that art and charity can form a single space.

Khrystyna Berehovska - the curator, thanks to whom the project gained clear form and weight. Her role may be compared to the way a critical eye and strategy turn an idea into a cultural phenomenon.

Mykola Filonov - the first financial donor and communication strategist. His support was the initial spark.

Also involved were Liudmyla Koval, the Korzun family with their publishing house“TVORY,” Olha Dernova, Rulan Palamarovskyi, Volodymyr Koziuk (junior), Oleh Lesiuk, and numerous partners who promoted the project in Ukraine and Canada.

Thus, Project 24 is not only about art, but also about the ethics of cooperation, where everyone contributes to preserving the truth.

Project 24 can be called a chronicle of pain, but more precisely - it is the art of transforming pain. Each canvas is evidence of war crimes and at the same time a manifestation of resilience. It is the voice of those who have died and those who continue to fight.

The project fulfills several missions:

Documentary - recording the reality of war in visual form;

Philosophical - raising questions about human dignity, memory, and freedom;

Diplomatic - serving as an instrument of dialogue with the world, which through art comes to understand Ukraine more deeply.

In this project, the principle of“art through awareness” is embodied: not aesthetics for aesthetics' sake, but a deep ethical impulse.

The presentation at the festival in Toronto opened an international dimension for Project 24. It was here that the tour across Canada and the USA began, where Ukrainian art resounds as a voice of truth in a world often drowning in news streams that blur memory. The exhibition gives the viewer not only images but also the experience of empathy.

This is the path on which Project 24 moves from the category of a“national phenomenon” to that of a“global cultural event.”

Project 24 is proof that even in the darkest of times, art does not disappear but is reborn, purified by pain and strengthened by faith. It is not merely a series of paintings - it is a tablet of memory, an ethical act, and a platform for humanism and philanthropy.

In the 21st century, when wars have once again returned to the heart of Europe, Ukrainian artists have shown the world that art can be not an escape from reality, but its truthful and powerful reflection. Project 24 is a chronicle that cannot be forgotten. It is art that turns the darkness of war into the light of truth.

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