The publishing house “Summit – Book” has released the novella *The Light and Shadows of Mariupol* by Olga Demidko, a professor at Mariupol State University. The book was one of the winners of the Ukrainian Book Institute’s art competition.
The novella transports the reader to Mariupol in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. At the center of the story is the artist Arkhip Kuindzhi, as well as other artists, the theater scene, and the people who shaped Ukrainian Mariupol. The publication combines fictional narrative with archival materials, photographs, and historical sources.
“I wrote this novella after I had already left Mariupol. This is my attempt to give Mariupol back its voice—to show the city as vibrant, beautiful, and cultured, full of people who dreamed, loved, created, and left a legacy of light behind them,” says Olga Demidko.
The book has now been distributed to libraries across Ukraine.
Based on materials from the Mariupol City Council