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Touch and See Photo Exhibition Presented in Lviv

June 12, 2008, the Touch and See photo exhibition by Yuri Bilak, meant for people with weak sight, was unveiled at the Lviv Historical Museum Italian Patio. Among the participants of the event were Head of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and founder of the Open Ukraine Foundation Arseniy Yatseniuk, author of the idea and photos Yuri Bilak, Head of the Lviv Oblast State Asministration Mykola Kmit, representatives of the local authorities, Open Ukraine Foundation, and Ukraine 3000 International Charitable Foundation. The exhibition will be displayed June 13-29 at the Lviv Historical Museum, third floor.

Addressing the audience, Yuri Bilak described the idea of the exhibition and its implementation. “Together with museum workers and blind people we have invented a new language, into which my photos were finally translated,” he said. Mr. Bilak thanked all those supporting his project and recording soundtracks for the photos.

Mr. Yatseniuk said that the fact that the support and participation of many renowned Ukrainians was a display of respect to the blind people. “Making soundtracks for the photos, we weren’t simply reading the texts aloud. We’ve lent a part of our souls to it,” he said. “Our desire was to get our ideas and feelings over to people who are unable to see.”

Mr. Yatseniuk said that the next Ukrainian city to receive the Touch and See exhibition would be Donetsk. He added that the event had drawn much public attention and would be displayed in all Ukraine’s oblasts. Mr. Yatseniuk also expressed his hope that the next organizers’ step would be to demonstrate it abroad and agreed to record soundtracks for the photos in foreign languages.

Head of the Supervisory Board of the Ukraine 3000 International Charitable Foundation Yekateryna Yushchenko sent her greetings to the participants and guests of the presentation. “This unique and skillfully made exhibition draws public attention to a very important problem. It is a problem of access to art for all Ukrainians with special needs, including the blind and people with weak sight. We have to not only speak about it but also do everything possible to give such people access to education and culture. Ukraine has to create favorable conditions for all her citizens to get access to the global heritage. I hope this exhibition will leave a deep trace in your hearts and souls, making you think again about the needs of people around us and do everything to help them,” the address read.

Touch and See is Ukraine’s first photo exhibition for the blind people. The author of its idea and photos is a French Ukrainian photo artist Yuri Bilak, with the support from the Open Ukraine Fund, Ukraine 3000 International Charitable Foundation, and the Embassy of France to Ukraine.

The exhibition has on display 30 3D photos from Yuri Bilak’s “The Ukrainians” series. Every color photo is coupled with its tactile replica, a transparent embossed file made of polymers. Every work is accompanied with a soundtrack describing the picture. They were recorded by prominent Ukrainian politicians and artists: Kateryna Yushchenko, Arseny Yatseniuk, Volodymyr Hryshko, Nina Matviyenko, Oleh Skrypka, Foma of the Mandry rock group, Oleh Pinchuk, Olha Herasimyuk, Sashko Polozhynsky, Olha Sumska, Bohdan Beniuk, Oksana Bilozir, Mykola Veresen’, Yuri Makarov, et. al.

The project was premiered at the Ukrainian House in Kyiv. In addition to Lviv, it will be soon presented in Donetsk, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and other Ukraine’s cities. A poster with fingerprints of the people who have recorded the soundtracks is traveling along with the exhibition. In the end of the tour, it will be sold at a beneficial auction. The organizers plan to use the proceeds from the auction to purchase a tactile replica machine for Ukraine.