On December 20, 2022, the presentation of the mobile exhibition "Volyn and North Rhine-Westphalia: Bridges from the Past to the Present" took place in the "Rose Auslander" conference hall at the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Haus Foundation / German-East European Forum in Düsseldorf, Germany. It was the result of a joint Ukrainian-German project.
From the Ukrainian side, Associate Professor Mykhailo Kostiuk from the Department of Socio-Humanitarian Technologies at LNTU participated as the author of the concept and texts and the scientific supervisor. Associate Professor Larysa Tykha from the Department of Foreign and Ukrainian Philology of LNTU was also part of the editorial group. Project partners included the regional group of the Association of German Expellees from the former Soviet Union in North Rhine-Westphalia, the Integration and Cultural Center in the Mettmann district, the NGO "International Society of Germans in Ukraine - Wiedergeburt," and the German-Ukrainian Society for Economics and Science in Mainz. The Ministry of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia supported the project.
The preparation of the exhibition took almost two years, significantly hindered and delayed by the pandemic and the Russian aggression against Ukraine. However, the working group completed the work, allowing the exhibition to be presented to German visitors.
The presentation was attended by Prof. Dr. Winfried Halder, Director of the Gerhart-Hauptmann-Haus Foundation / German-East European Forum, and Dietmar Schulmeister, Head of the Association of German Expellees from the former Soviet Union in North Rhine-Westphalia. Visitors included descendants of Volyn Germans from various regions of Germany, representatives of local German public organizations, and Ukrainian refugees living in Düsseldorf.
Associate Professor Mykhailo Kostiuk spoke about the project, presented each stand briefly, and answered visitors' questions. Attendees noted the richness and diversity of the materials presented, the organic combination of texts and illustrative materials, and the successful design of the exhibition, which German designer Liliya Schröder did.
The exhibition comprises 22 stands and is prepared in Ukrainian and German versions. The organizers plan to continue its demonstration in various cities in Germany and Ukraine next year. A similar event is scheduled in Lutsk.
Михайло Костюк
