“Harmony of Image and Sound: Embroidery and Folk Singing in Central Podillia” is a new project in Khmelnytskyi, designed to preserve and present the cultural heritage of Podillia: its embroidery and folk singing. The foundation of the project consists of 12 digitized folk costumes from the private collection of the NGO Revival of Podillia Traditions, Podillia collector Andrii Kryshchuk, and the holdings of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Art Museum, combined with samples of song recordings made during expeditions by the NGO Revival of Podillia Traditions.

Since the first days of the full-scale invasion, Ukrainian society has faced countless challenges. One of them is the struggle for our cultural memory. The issues of preservation and accessibility of cultural heritage have gained particular importance today.

Many exhibits from the collections of Revival of Podillia Traditions, the Khmelnytskyi Regional Art Museum, and Andrii Kryshchuk’s private collection have already become unique testimonies of our history and identity. Each of these artifacts is a voice from the past, speaking to future generations.

Podillia is not only picturesque landscapes and fertile black soil; it is also a spiritual heritage expressed in language, songs, rituals, and, of course, clothing. The traditional Podillia costume is a kind of passport of national identity. The white linen of the shirts, densely embroidered with red and black threads, reflects and balances the character of the Podillia people: restraint, strength, and depth of feeling. Every stitch, every pattern in Podillia attire is a symbol telling the story of a family, a village, a destiny. Through these preserved forms, the beauty and dignity of the Ukrainian people speak to us from the depths of centuries.

The project presentation program includes the opening of a photo exhibition at the Khmelnytskyi Regional Art Museum, where visitors will be able to hear authentic songs through QR codes alongside images of the costumes. Digitized materials, descriptions, and additional resources will be available on the museum’s website xoxm.art.

The event will also feature traditional singing by the folk group Ladovytsi (led by Iryna Teliukh). Within the framework of the project, embroidery and traditional singing workshops will also be held.

The project was created within the grant program Cohesion through Culture, implemented by the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation and funded by the Swiss-Ukrainian project Cohesion and Regional Development of Ukraine (UCORD), carried out with the support of Switzerland through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the company NIRAS Sweden AB.