현지용 기자
2024년 10월 23일
Today, the Kyiv History Museum opened a special exhibition. The name of this exhibition, held in collaboration with the Frankfurt German Architectural Museum and the Goethe-Institut, is 'PROTEST/ARCHITECTURE. BARRICADES AND TENTS: THE WORLD AND UKRAINE.' It is an exhibition that provides a glimpse into the 'history of resistance' created by citizens of Ukraine and the world by collecting protest structures such as barricades and tents, as well as their records.
This day coincided with the 20th anniversary of the Orange Revolution in Ukraine and the 11th anniversary of the Dignity Revolution in Ukraine, the 'Ukrainian Maidan Day.' Former President Viktor Yushchenko, who survived a poisoning attempt by Russia and served as the third President of Ukraine, attended the exhibition and gave a congratulatory speech. I went to the gathering of the guests to take a picture, and it turned out that the old man with white hair in front of me was none other than former President Yushchenko.
From the revolutions in Western Europe in 1948 to the Arab Spring, the Orange Revolution in Ukraine and the Euromaidan Revolution, the storming of the U.S. Capitol, and the democracy movement in Myanmar. Throughout this exhibition, the history, images, and model buildings of all kinds of protests around the world are installed. Also on display are documentary footage of the cries from that day, catapults, helmets, and bulletproof vests used during the Euromaidan Revolution.
In particular, I saw records of the '2019 Hong Kong Democracy Movement', my first conflict reporting event that I personally went to see, in this exhibition. The Hong Kong Democracy Movement was my first experience and first step toward my dream of covering conflicts and wars around the world. After five years, I looked back on this history again in Ukraine - a country that has gone through revolution and war. I had a strange feeling that I was also riding the great wave of human history called the 'fight for freedom' and its flow.
The documentaries screened in this exhibition contained scenes of protests around the world, from Ukraine and Europe to Africa, Asia, North America, and South America.