Museums of Polina Raiko and Ostap Vyshnia Flooded as Russia Detonates Kakhovka HPP
Around 80 populated areas in the Kherson region, along with cultural and archaeological landmarks, have ended up in the flood zone in Ukraine due to Russia's detonation of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Station dam.
The house-museum of Polina Raiko in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky has been submerged. This was reported by artist Semen Khramtsov, a representative of the Polina Raiko Charitable Foundation of the Kherson region, on his Facebook page.
Polina Raiko's house was unique because the artist had personally painted it in its entirety. It is a vivid example of Ukrainian naive art (or art brut) following Maria Prymachenko.
Born in 1928, Raiko lived her entire life in Oleshky and started painting in her adulthood. After enduring life-changing tragic events – the death of her husband, daughter, the arrest and later death of her son – she dedicated her life to art. Over time, her house transformed into a comprehensive installation.
However, the Russian occupiers are not evacuating people or animals and are not allowing them to leave the city independently, stated city mayor Yevhen Rishchuk on Ukrainian Radio.
The house-museum of Ostap Vyshnia in the village of Krinki, Oleshky district, also ended up under water in the Russian-occupied territory.
The museum was one of the region's tourist attractions. The Oleksiy Shovkunenko Kherson Art Museum is also located in the flood zone, as reported by Mariana Oleskiv, head of the State Agency for Tourism Development, on her Facebook page.
The archaeological gem of the Kherson region, the ancient city-port of Oleshnia, is now submerged. It is located on an island in the Pudova Strait area, 12 km downstream of the Dnipro from the center of Kherson.
The Ochakiv Gate – part of the defensive fortifications of Kherson built in 1783 and an architecture monument of national significance – is under threat of flooding.
The "Green Farms of Tavria" complex, built on the site of ancient farms, could also be flooded. An authentic museum of Ukrainian folk life from the 15th-20th centuries was located here, as well as the famous pink salt lakes.
The picturesque village of Tyahynka, where archaeological excavations had revealed Bronze Age and Scythian-era settlements and a medieval fortification, is likely to end up underwater, resulting in the loss of unique historical findings.
Miraculously, the Kherson Art Museum has survived in Kherson. The water stopped just 230 meters away from it, museum staff reported on social media.