21 May, 2026, 18.00
A conversation about contemporary Ukraine
The International Cultural Centre, in collaboration with the Mieroszewski Centre, invites you to a launch event for the book “Innocent content and other traps: Ukrainian essays on identity” . This is a collection of texts by contemporary Ukrainian authors who reflect on memory, identity, language and culture. They raise questions about appropriated cultural heritage and traces of imperial narratives, as well as the role of literature, art and cultural institutions during wartime. The event will provide an opportunity to discuss contemporary Ukraine as told in its own voice – beyond simplifications and ready-made interpretations.
The discussion will feature Prof. Katarzyna Kotyńska, Sofija Riabczuk and Bohdana Romancowa. The event will be moderated by Joanna Majewska-Grabowska. For Polish readers, the book and the discussion will not only be an opportunity to engage with Ukrainian intellectual thought, but also a chance to gain a better understanding of the experiences, historical references and cultural codes that shape contemporary Ukraine.
The book “Innocent content and other traps: Ukrainian essays on identity”
Published by the Mieroszewski Centre, this book is about memory and identity, but also about how culture becomes a space for reclaiming narratives. The authors of the essays within examine both the legacy of the past and the experience of the present. They ask why the Kiev Psalter is still in St Petersburg, how and why Russia removed Ukrainian cultural heritage, what Soviet monumental propaganda left behind, and how the language of the empire shaped the way of thinking about reality.
However, the book “Innocent content and other traps: Ukrainian essays on identity” is not only devoted to history or war. It is also a story about contemporary Ukrainian culture and its resilience. The publication highlights, amongst other things, museums which, during the war, become places of support and community. It discusses literature operating under a state of emergency and what Ukrainians have been reading since 24 February 2022. It speaks volumes about a culture that no longer wishes to be told in someone else’s language. The essays collected in this volume are united by a distrust of simple answers. It is a book about challenging stereotypes, dismantling ready-made interpretations and reclaiming the right to one’s own narrative.
The publication was produced as part of the Polish-Ukrainian School of Translation “Words to Words” – a project by the Mieroszewski Centre for young translators.
The book will be available for purchase at the event.
More about the book “Innocent content and other traps: Ukrainian essays on identity”
Participants:
Prof. Katarzyna Kotyńska – translator of Ukrainian literature, Ukrainianist and literary scholar. Professor at the Jagiellonian University, winner of the 2023 Drahoman Prize. Author of the book “Lviv: Rereading the City” and translator of key Ukrainian authors.
Joanna Majewska-Grabowska – PhD student at the Faculty of Philology, Jagiellonian University; translator from Ukrainian; guide and educator (including at the ICC, the Museum of Contemporary Art MOCAK, and the Museum of Photography MuFo). Co-author of the podcast “20 Minutes to Ukraine”.
Sofija Riabczuk – coordinator of the Ukrainian programme at the Education Department of the National Museum in Warsaw. Previously associated with, amongst others, the National Art Museum of Ukraine and Mystetskyi Arsenal. Author of texts and projects in the field of museum education and culture.
Bohdana Romancowa – editor, literary critic and essayist. She teaches literature courses, collaborates with Ukrainian educational platforms and the Polish magazine “Dwutygodnik”. Author of texts published in, among others, the volumes “Dictionary of War” and “War 2022”.