Irreplaceable: Ukrainian Cultural Heritage, War, and the World’s Loss
July 9, 2026
RSVP
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, hundreds of museums, churches, archaeological sites, libraries, monuments, and historic buildings have been damaged or destroyed. As of July 1 2026, UNESCO had verified damage to more than 540 cultural sites across Ukraine, underscoring the unprecedented threat facing the country’s cultural heritage.
What is at stake is more than the destruction of individual buildings or works of art. When cultural heritage is intentionally targeted during armed conflict, the loss extends far beyond national borders, diminishing humanity’s shared cultural legacy.
Join renowned Ukrainian-American art historian and curator Konstantin Akinsha for a timely discussion of the ongoing destruction of Ukraine’s cultural heritage and the international response. Drawing on his decades of scholarship, recent publications, and advocacy before European cultural authorities, Akinsha will examine evidence that many attacks on cultural sites are not merely incidental consequences of war but form part of a broader campaign to erase or appropriate Ukrainian cultural identity.
The colloquium will explore recent attacks on museums and cultural institutions, including the destruction of facilities such as the Dovzhenko Film Studio and the systematic looting of the Kherson Art Museum, as well as the historical context of Russia’s longstanding efforts to appropriate, suppress, or erase Ukrainian cultural heritage. Akinsha will also discuss the legal and institutional frameworks designed to protect cultural property during armed conflict, assess the effectiveness of organizations such as UNESCO, and consider what additional measures governments, international organizations, museums, scholars, and civil society can take to safeguard endangered cultural heritage.
This conversation offers a rare opportunity to hear from one of the world’s leading authorities on Eastern European modernism and Ukrainian cultural heritage about one of the defining challenges of cultural preservation in our time.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Memorial Italia, a non governmental organization composed of Eastern European historians, Slavic scholars, translators, and enthusiasts of Russian, Ukrainian, Central Asian, and Caucasian history and culture, interested in the preservation of historical memory and human rights. Find out more about Memorial Italia here.
