Cats in the Street Art of LBWS CAT UKRAINE: Constructing Cultural Memory in Wartime

By Yuliya Stodolinska

The role of art in wartime is hard to overestimate. As the editors of War and Art: A Visual History of Modern Conflict rightly state “in times of crisis, we often turn to artists for truth-telling and memory-keeping. There is no greater crisis than war”[1]. In all times, war has been powerfully portrayed, resisted, and remembered through different art forms. Street art is not an exception. It is an artistic practice that can address cultural, political, social, personal issues. Some artists use this genre to express their creativity and share their individual emotions, visions, and interpretations of the world. Others try to raise awareness of topics that they think are important for society, to provoke thought, challenge societal norms, bring people together, and to foster a sense of community[2].

Urban artistic practices in Ukraine may not yet be as popular as similar art practices in other countries, however, they have also become an integral part of Ukrainian urban culture and have a rich history which reflects Ukraine’s political, societal, and cultural developments. A real outburst of artistic practices took place in February 2022 as a powerful response to Russia’s full-scale invasion, aiming to raise awareness of what is happening in Ukraine and to reinforce the resilience of Ukraine and its people. Rachel Kerr, Professor of War and Society at Kings College London  accurately points out that some of the artworks which have recently appeared “represent grief and trauma”[3], and she agrees with communications consultant Ivan Shovkoplias that others reflect “the fire of hope and defiance that comes with such tragedy”[4]. Blair A. Ruble, a distinguished fellow of the Wilson Center, emphasizes the importance of the positive effect of the emergence of street art in Ukrainian urban places in the first months of the full-scale invasion: “Over and over, artists throughout Ukraine have turned their country’s streets into a canvas expressing resistance, resilience, and rebirth. Haunted by what is happening around them, professional and amateur artists have lifted paintbrushes and spray cans to proclaim that they, their communities, and their country have a future”[5]. Some people might think that in wartime, such artistic practices as vibrant and multi-colored patriotic street art could be rather out-of-place. However, it is my firm belief that after Russia’s occupation of Ukrainian territories in 2014 and the full-scale invasion in 2022, such bright statements of solidarity, hope, and support have become more relevant than ever before, they have become an important part of the cultural front in wartime, a new source of inspiration for Ukrainians.

In this article, I explore the positive role of street art in public space during wartime on the example of the street art produced by a team of artists known as LBWS CAT UKRAINE (lbws_168)[6]. Currently this team has given many interviews to journalists from different parts of the globe which signifies that their works have attracted attention not only within Ukraine but also worldwide[7]. The street art of this particular group of artists is analyzed as an example of symbolic markers present in the public space that try to document the events, roles of specific people, actions, and words which are important for this time in history. I analyze the multimodal components of the street art – by providing insights on the peculiarities of different cultural levels being presented and decoding some of the verbal and nonverbal elements – to emphasize the positive role of the artworks in constructing cultural memory during the war and to establish how these works contribute to the representation of Ukrainian national identity in wartime.

LBWS CAT UKRAINE is a team of artists from Odesa, who create patriotic street art featuring different images of cats in wartime. The artists say that they have chosen cats because that is one of the unofficial symbols of their hometown[8].

A photographer from Odesa, Alexander Voropaev, presented the photographs of the street art of LBWS CAT UKRAINE at the exhibition of documentary photography “Unobvious War”. According to the information on his website[9], Ihor Matroskyn and Andrii Bilyi are both from Odesa and are part of LBWS CAT UKRAINE which currently consists of five people, most of whom prefer to stay anonymous. Matroskyn and Bilyi started drawing graffiti in 2004, traveled around Ukraine to leave their mark in different locations, and then switched to street art. In 2010, Odesa saw the first works of street art by Matroskyn with the hashtag #Animallbws. Bilyi produced his first mural in 2014, and in 2017 the group LBWS Animal was created together with fellow artists. Their works of art featuring endangered animals on the walls of buildings can be found in different cities in Ukraine, Greece, Germany, and Azerbaijan. The team utilized street art to emphasize the importance of taking care of nature. According to Oleksiy Cherkasov, “one of the endangered species they used to draw was a European wildcat, which became an inspiration of their new, patriotic street art movement with the cat as a mascot”[10]. In 2021 the character of the cat was invented as the symbol of independence, sophistication, and strength. The cat became the patriotic cat after the start of the full-scale invasion as a form of support.

The artists use their own funds for their work and also rely on donations from people who admire and support their work[11]. Besides creating patriotic street art, LBWS CAT UKRAINE are active in volunteering. Already in 2014, when Russia occupied Ukrainian territories, the team of artists started painting vehicles in camouflage, which they then donated to the Ukrainian army. In an interview for Arts Help, the largest digital arts publisher, LBWS CAT UKRAINE state “Our main mission is to help Ukraine win, and support the army who fights our battle”[12].

 The cats depicted in the street art have become colorful spots that bring hope to many grey and destroyed cities. New cat street art appears now and then in different places all over Ukraine. Once a cat is ready, LBWS CAT UKRAINE publishes a photo of the creation and sometimes brief information about its location on their social media accounts[13]. Each new cat becomes a mystery for the people as they try to guess in which street and on which building the cat has been depicted and what it represents. Many cats are located in Odesa. However, they can be found in other Ukrainian cities as well, often the ones that have been under severe attacks or have recently been liberated – the ones that need motivation and support the most. Sometimes the team almost follows the army and comes to the deoccupied cities as soon as it is permitted. All the cats which are portrayed in the street art have unique stories of their creation. The artists have given interviews where they explain what motivated them to create this or that work of art and also sometimes provide short explanations in their social media accounts.

In this study, I employ interdisciplinary methods of textual, multimodal, and digital discourse analysis in order to explore and decode the multimodal components of the analyzed street art. The aim is to establish how these components contribute to the representation of Ukrainian culture and Ukrainian national identity, as well as to the shaping of cultural memory. The analysis is given on a general national level, as the analyzed street art is seen as a tool to unite people from different parts of the country and to incorporate the peculiar features of different narratives into the artistic practices.

Street art is understood as an “open, unsanctioned, ephemeral, creative and contemporary sociocultural medium [practice] in urban space, that typically incorporates two interacting semiotic systems (language and depiction), and thus, polysemiotic, often addressing, but not limited to, sociopolitical issues”[14]. Gunther Kress and Theo van Leeuwen define the use of several semiotic modes in the design of a semiotic product or event, together with the particular way in which the modes are combined, as multimodality[15]. The combination of verbal and nonverbal elements results in a multimodal text which is a single visual, structural, semantic, and functional whole. Consequently, the analyzed works of street art are symbolic markers present in the public space that try to record events, the role of specific people, actions, and words that are important for this time in history in a colorful multimodal format.

Cultural memory refers to the shared knowledge and collective experiences that a particular community or society uses to construct its identity and shape its worldview[16]. It encompasses the stories, traditions, values, beliefs, customs, and symbols that are passed on from one generation to another and that shape the way people perceive themselves, the world around them, and define their identity. Nonetheless, cultural memory is very dynamic and it constantly changes over time, thus reflecting shifting social and cultural attitudes and perspectives.

National identity is one of the deepest layers of identity that many people feel strongly about[17]. The use of the term ‘national identity’ is often considered as highly ambiguous because it can refer either to citizens of a political state or members of an “imagined” nation[18]. Hence, it is important to establish a clear differentiation between the notions of state and nation: the state represents the political entity, whereas a nation comprises a group of individuals who perceive themselves as sharing specific characteristics, including but not limited to the following: common descent, common historical memories, common culture, homeland, desire for political self-determination (based on Guibernau[19])[20]. National identity often includes elements of cultural identity, as cultural practices and traditions can play a role in shaping the collective identity of a nation.

Taking into consideration that through references to certain symbolic markers, events or historical figures, people re-define their national and cultural identities and explain ongoing events, I would like to use Geert Hofstede’s cultural model[21], also known as the Onion model to present the findings about the multimodal cultural components which are portrayed in the street art and which potentially shape cultural memory. This model consists of four layers: symbols, heroes, rituals, and values.

The outer layer of the cultural model encompasses symbols that are common to the culture, the ones which are often on the surface and can be easily recognized[22]. For example, words, pictures, different gestures that carry a particular meaning for representatives of one shared culture. This is a very dynamic layer because many symbols can appear and disappear as well as change their meaning or incorporate new additional meanings.

Among the symbols that are present in the analyzed street art, one of the most common symbols is the Ukrainian flag and its colors – blue and yellow. These colors are used in many works of art not only in the depiction of the flag itself but also as parts of other elements (clothes, letters in words, etcetera). Before the war, the flag was treated predominantly as an official governmental symbol. Nowadays, Ukrainians all over the world, use the Ukrainian flag and its colors as a declaration of national identity, and as a sign of being proud to be Ukrainians. Representatives of other nationalities, use the Ukrainian flag and its colors to show solidarity with Ukraine and its people. This is one of the examples when the symbol acquires additional meaning based on the context.

Other national symbols that are depicted in the street art are the coat of arms of Ukraine – the trident, the national musical instrument – bandura (Figure 1), national clothes – vyshyvanka and sharovary (Figure 2), the national dish – borschch (Figure 3) (culture of Ukrainian borschch-cooking was inscribed on UNESCO’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2022[23]). They are not used as often as the flag, but, nevertheless, represent the Ukrainian culture.

Taking into consideration that Ukraine’s territory has been invaded, it is not surprising that the analyzed street art contains many symbols which are associated with war. These are the pixel camouflage patterns, military equipment – weapons, vehicles, etcetera (Figure 4). However, it should be noted that these images and colors are portrayed with a positive and often humorous connotation, often symbolizing the efforts of the Ukrainian army to protect the lives of Ukrainians and their victories on the battlefield.

Water is considered to be a symbol of life. Ukrainians, especially from the South, know that Mykolaiv has been without drinking water since April 2022 when water pipes near Kherson were destroyed. Odesa was one of the first cities which offered help and since then has brought big amounts of drinking water for the neighboring city as depicted in the street art (Figure 5). That is why in wartime water has become not only a symbol of life but also a symbol of support and care.

A cat drawing a yellow ribbon (Figure 6) appeared in Kherson after the city was liberated in November 2022. It symbolizes the Yellow Ribbon Movement which guerillas organized in Kherson as a sign of protest against the occupation. There were big problems with the internet in the city, but the Ukrainians needed the motivation to stay strong and know that they were not forgotten. That is why activists started drawing yellow ribbons in the streets as a symbol of Ukraine. Only yellow color was used so that the Russians would not understand the meaning at once and would not suppress the movement.

The combination of verbal and nonverbal components in the street art often makes it easier to understand the meaning because both components complement each other. In one of the works of street art (Figure 7), the cat is holding an airplane and next to it, the word Mriy! (Dream!) is written. The text leads us to the association with the name of the largest Ukrainian airplane Antonov An-225 Mriya (a Dream) that has been destroyed during the first days of the full-scale invasion. Ukrainian aircraft manufacturer Antonov has promised to rebuild the airplane and believes that this can be accomplished. Accordingly, the work of art urges Ukrainians to believe that it is important to dream, better times are ahead and everything is possible.

Even though the war has affected the educational process in Ukraine and many universities were destroyed, educational institutions continue to work in online and hybrid formats. A cat in a graduation gown and cap on the walls of Odesa National Economic University (ONEU) (Figure 8) symbolizes the importance of education even in wartime. Another work of street art depicts cats with books (Figure 9). It is written that books are a weapon and defense, emphasizing the importance and power of being educated.

Besides non-verbal symbols, street art depicts some phrases that acquired a special meaning and became symbolic during wartime. For example, the phrase “Dobrogo vechora, my z Ukrainy” (Good evening, we are from Ukraine) which was first used by PROBASS ∆ HARDI in their soundtrack “Dobrogo vechora” (Good evening) in 2021, became a very popular greeting for many Ukrainians worldwide, especially after Vitalii Kim (Head of the Mykolaiv Regional Administration, (currently Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration)) and Valerii Zaluzhnyi (Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine) began to use this greeting in their video updates on the current situation. This phrase has become one of the symbols of resilience for Ukrainians. The phrase “Vse bude dobre” (“Everything will be ok”) has been transformed by Ukrainians into “Vse bude Ukraina” (“Everything will be Ukraine”) with the meaning that everything will be wonderful and Ukraine will be successful in its endeavors. “Kazhy Palyanytsya” (“Say Palyanytsya”) is now often used rather humorously as the code phrase to check if the person is really Ukrainian. At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, many Russians pretended to be Ukrainians when taken captive. That is when they were asked to say “palyanytsya” (the name of Ukrainian bread) to check if they could pronounce it correctly. Russians usually had trouble pronouncing this word phonetically correctly and in such a way the truth was revealed.

The next layer in the cultural model focuses on heroes. Hofstede defines heroes as people who are alive or dead, real or imaginary, who possess characteristics that are highly praised in a culture and serve as models for behavior.[24] These can be people who have made a significant influence on the lives of others during a specific time in history. The analyzed works of street art commemorate those Ukrainians who have made an important contribution to the fight for freedom and potentially become heroes in cultural memory. Among them are Valerii Zaluzhnyi, a brave leader of the Ukrainian Army, Vitalii Kim who has taken up an important role of keeping up the spirits of not only the citizens of Mykolaiv but also the citizens of the whole Ukraine by posting video updates. Another hero depicted in the works of street art is not a Ukrainian, but a person who is important for Ukraine because of his support from the very first days of the full-scale Invasion – Boris Johnson.

These heroes can be recognized pretty easily by those who keep track of the ongoing events in Ukraine based on certain characteristic features, such as the V for Victory gesture of Valerii Zaluzhnyi (Figure 10), the famous colorful socks of Vitalii Kim (Figure 11), or Boris Johnson’s hairdo (Figure 12).

Heroes don’t necessarily have to be human beings. The famous dog Patron (Figure 13) has also become a true Ukrainian Hero in 2022. He is the mascot of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Chernihiv Oblast and helps the Ukrainian military to find explosives that have been left behind. His image is also used in educational videos to teach children to recognize dangerous objects in wartime.

Another very important group of heroes who are true role models for the whole country are the military. Soldiers of different divisions who guard the borders of Ukraine and protect the lives of Ukrainians fighting for their freedom are represented in many works of the analyzed street art. Words of gratitude and trust or greetings on the occasion of professional holidays (e.g. Day of the Armed Forces, Marine Corps Day, etc.) are added in the short descriptions on social media next to the photos. Besides Ukrainian and foreign governmental officials, representatives of the military, there are also cats that represent people of different professions: doctors, farmers, delivery people, public utility workers, etc. – all those people who have been continuing to work in wartime regardless of the circumstances (Figure 14, 15).

The third layer – rituals – corresponds to the collective activities within a culture that are carried out by certain people at certain times[25]. These can be ways of how people greet and pay respect to each other. Rituals may include discourse or the ways language is using text and talk in daily interaction and in communicating beliefs.

The analyzed street art portrays rituals of wartime in Ukraine. The phrase “Slava Ukraini” (“Glory to Ukraine”) dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. It can often be heard together with the reply “Heroyam Slava” (“Glory to the Heroes”). These phrases are not only the battle cry of the Armed Forces of Ukraine or a patriotic salute, they have developed into a greeting and farewell indicating support for Ukraine and have formed a certain ritual (Figure 16-17).

The handshake ritual that is one more form of greeting also symbolizes support. Therefore, the work of street art where cats from Ukraine and Taiwan shake paws (Figure 18) represents the mutual support which is greatly appreciated.

The innermost layer represents the values. According to Hofstede these are broad tendencies to prefer certain states of affairs over others[26]. This layer is less dynamic than the other ones as changes do not take place as often. It is closely connected with the other three layers because cultural values are something that can be represented through the depiction of symbols, heroes, and rituals and requires additional time to discover and understand. The analyzed street art proves that in wartime such values as freedom, independence, hope, support, and creativity are vital elements of Ukrainian culture. These are the values that now have become more important than ever because they help people to move forward, gain freedom, and live in an independent country on their own land. Even though each day brings new unexpected challenges, Ukrainians are learning to stay strong, to continue working, to look for and find creative solutions to any problems that arise.

The multimodal components of the layers within the cultural model represent some of the constituents of cultural memory which is currently being constructed during wartime in Ukraine. The artists try to incorporate different narratives into their street art based on varied time boundaries, communities, locations, experiences and the decoding of the meaning and its interpretation in some cases may require specific cultural knowledge. At the same time, by spreading positivity with the colorful works, their patriotic street art strives to motivate Ukrainians to maintain resilience, and eventually achieve victory. The works of art in the streets, as well as their digital records, aim to reach out to a wider range of people of different backgrounds who live in various parts of the globe. The multimodal components contribute to the recreation of Ukrainian national and cultural identity and are important not only for fostering a sense of inclusion and unity but also for passing on collective and individual knowledge and experience to future generations.

The works of street art in Ukraine have already become new forms of social activism and they are actively contributing to the construction of cultural memory in wartime expressing different viewpoints and different narratives. LBWS CAT UKRAINE’s artworks highlight significant people and important events, depict cultural symbols which will help to remember those current events, and their digital records serve as documentation of historical evidence for future generations. When the war is over, and Ukraine is open to tourists again, I believe that these artistic practices will help to rediscover the cities of Ukraine and tell their wartime stories in a creative way, highlighting important values that helped Ukrainians stay resilient, fight for freedom and peace, and gain victory.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Text Sources

1. Agence France-Presse, “Ukrainian graffiti artists thumb their nose at war in Odessa”, RAWSTORY, 2022, https://www.rawstory.com/ukrainian-graffiti-artists-thumb-their-nose-at-war-in-odessa/ [accessed 03.03.2023].
2. Anderson, Benedict, Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, London: Verso, 1991, 224.
3. Astrid, Erll, Ansgar, Nünning, and Young, Sara B., Cultural Memory Studies: An International and Interdisciplinary Handbook, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2008.
4. Cherkasov, Oleksii, “Team LBWS 168 and Their Patriotic Cats Help Locals in Odesa Deal with Invasion”, ARTSHELP, 2022, https://www.artshelp.com/lbws-168-odesa-ukraine/ [accessed: 15.01.2023].
5. Grunow, Hendrikje, “Making Memory on the Wall: Constructing and Contesting Collective Memory in Bogotá”, Nuart journal, 2/1, 2019, 41-49.
6. Guibernau, Montserrat, Nationalisms: The Nation-State and Nationalism in the Twentieth Century, Cambridge: Polity Press, 1996, 174.
7. Hofstede, G. and Hofstede, G.J., Culture and Organizations—Software of the Mind: Intercultural Cooperation and its Importance for Survival, 2nd Edition, New York: McGraw Hill, 2005.
8. Kerr, Rachel, “Banksy in Ukraine: how his defiant new works offer hope” The Conversation, 2022, https://theconversation.com/banksy-in-ukraine-how-his-defiant-new-works-offer-hope-194952 [accessed: 21.02.2023].
9. Kress, Gunther and van Leeuwen, Theo, Reading images: the grammar of visual design, London: Routledge, 2007.
10. Lifestyle Asia, “Cat-theme murals and graffiti arts proliferate on the streets of war-torn Ukraine”, yahoo!news, 2022, https://malaysia.news.yahoo.com/cat-theme-murals-graffiti-arts-033724977.html [accessed: 25.02.2022].
11. Noubel, Filip “Giant cats on walls: Odesa street art inspired by the war, but not only”, 2022 https://globalvoices.org/2022/10/26/giant-cats-on-walls-odesa-street-art-inspired-by-the-war-but-not-only/# [accessed: 15.12.2022].
12. Ross, Jeffrey Ian, Routledge Handbook of Graffiti and Street Art, Abingdon: Routledge, 2016, 5.
13. Ruble, Blair A., “Turning to the Street (Art) for Meaning” FOCUS UKRAINE A blog of the Kennan Institute, 2022, https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/turning-street-art-meaning [accessed: 02.02.2023].
14. Scheible, Florian, “Odesa fährt die Krallen aus”, Katapult Ukraine, 2022, https://katapult-ukraine.com/artikel/odesa-faehrt-die-krallen-aus [accessed: 19.06.2023]. 
15.  Stampoulidis, Georgios, Street Artivism on Athenian Walls: A cognitive semiotic analysis of metaphor and narrative in street art, Lund: Media-Tryck, Lund University, 2021.
16. UNESCO Press, “Culture of Ukrainian borscht cooking inscribed on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding”, 2022, https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/culture-ukrainian-borscht-cooking-inscribed-list-intangible-cultural-heritage-need-urgent [accessed: 31.01.2023].
17. Voropaev, Alexander, “LBWS_168 My z Odesy (LBWS_168 We are from Odesa)”, Foto-stil.com, 2022, https://foto-still.com/lbws-cats/ [accessed: 27.12.2022].
18. Weber, Jean-Jacques & Horner, Kristine Introducing multilingualism: A social approach, London: Routledge, 2021, 214, 85.

Visual Sources

1. LBWS CAT (Facebook) https://www.facebook.com/groups/747765849815801 [accessed: 15.01.2023]
2. LBWS CAT UKRAINE (Instagram) https://www.instagram.com/lbws_168/ [accessed: 10.01.2023]
3. LBWS CAT UKRAINE (Telegram) https://t.me/lbwscat [accessed: 21.01.2023]

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REFERENCES

[1] Joanna Bourke (ed.), Art and War: A Visual History of Modern Conflict, London: Reaktion Books, 2017, 392, 3.

[2]Hendrikje Grunow, “Making Memory on the Wall: Constructing and Contesting Collective Memory in Bogotá”, Nuart journal, 2/1, 2019, 41-49.

[3] Rachel Kerr, “Banksy in Ukraine: how his defiant new works offer hope” The Conversation, 2022, https://theconversation.com/banksy-in-ukraine-how-his-defiant-new-works-offer-hope-194952 [accessed: 21.02.2023].

[4] Ivan Shovkoplias, “How art became a mirror of Ukrainian resistance” Russia’s War in Ukraine, 2022, https://war.ukraine.ua/articles/how-art-became-a-mirror-of-ukrainian-resistance/ [accessed: 21.02.2023].

[5] Blair A. Ruble, “Turning to the Street (Art) for Meaning” FOCUS UKRAINE A blog of the Kennan Institute, 2022, https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/turning-street-art-meaning [accessed: 02.02.2023].

[6] https://www.instagram.com/lbws_168/ [accessed: 10.01.2023].

[7] Agence France-Presse, “Ukrainian graffiti artists thumb their nose at war in Odessa”, RAWSTORY, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/ukrainian-graffiti-artists-thumb-their-nose-at-war-in-odessa/ [accessed 03.03.2023]; Filip Noubel, “Giant cats on walls: Odesa street art inspired by the war, but not only”, 2022 https://globalvoices.org/2022/10/26/giant-cats-on -walls-odesa-street-art-inspired-by-the-war-but-not-only/# [accessed: 15.12.2022]; Florian Scheible, “Odesa fährt die Krallen aus”, Katapult Ukraine, 2022, https://katapult-ukraine.com/artikel/odesa-faehrt-die-krallen-aus [accessed: 19.06.2023]; Lifestyle Asia, “Cat-theme murals and graffiti arts proliferate on the streets of war-torn Ukraine”, yahoo!news, 2022, https://malaysia.news.yahoo.com/cat-theme-murals-graffiti-arts-033724977.html [accessed: 25.02.2022].

[8] Noubel, “Giant cats on walls”.

[9] Alexander Voropaev, “LBWS_168 My z Odesy (LBWS_168 We are from Odesa)”, Foto-stil.com, 2022, https://foto-still.com/lbws-cats/ [accessed: 27.12.2022].

[10] Oleksii Cherkasov, “Team LBWS 168 and Their Patriotic Cats Help Locals in Odesa Deal with Invasion”, ARTSHELP, 2022, https://www.artshelp.com/lbws-168-odesa-ukraine/ [accessed: 15.01.2023].

[11] Scheible, “Odesa fährt die Krallen aus”.

[12] Cherkasov, “Team LBWS 168 and Their Patriotic Cats Help Locals in Odesa Deal with Invasion”.

[13] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lbws_168/?hl=en [accessed: 10.01.2023]; Telegram t.me/lbwscat [accessed: 21.01.2023]; Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/747765849815801 [accessed: 15.01.2023].

[14] Georgios Stampoulidis, Street Artivism on Athenian Walls: A cognitive semiotic analysis of metaphor and narrative in street art, Lund: Media-Tryck, Lund University, 2021, 31.

[15] Gunther Kress, Theo van Leeuwen, Reading images: the grammar of visual design, London: Routledge, 2007.

[16] Erll Astrid, Nünning Ansgar, and Sara B. Young, Cultural Memory Studies: An International and Interdisciplinary Handbook, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2008.

[17] Jean-Jacques Weber, Kristine Horner, Introducing multilingualism: A social approach, London: Routledge, 2021, 214, 85.

[18] Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, London: Verso, 1991, 224.

[19] Montserrat Guibernau, Nationalisms: The Nation-State and Nationalism in the Twentieth Century, Cambridge: Polity Press, 1996, 174.

[20] Jean-Jacques Weber, Kristine Horner, Introducing multilingualism: A social approach, London: Routledge, 2021, 214, 85f.

[21] Geert Hofstede, Gert Jan Hofstede, Culture and Organizations—Software of the Mind: Intercultural Cooperation and its Importance for Survival, 2nd Edition, New York: McGraw Hill, 2005, 7.

[22] Ibid., 8.

[23] UNESCO Press, “Culture of Ukrainian borscht cooking inscribed on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding”, 2022, https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/culture-ukrainian-borscht-cooking-inscribed-list-intangible-cultural-heritage-need-urgent [accessed: 31.01.2023].

[24] Hofstede and Hofstede, Culture and Organizations—Software of the Mind: Intercultural Cooperation and its Importance for Survival, 8.

[25] Hofstede and Hofstede, Culture and Organizations, 9.

[26] Hofstede and Hofstede, Culture and Organizations, 9.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Yuliya Stodolinska is an Associate Professor of the English Philology Department at Petro Mohyla Black Sea National University (Mykolaiv, Ukraine), holds a PhD in Philology from Kherson State University (major Germanic Languages). Currently she is a Visiting Postdoctoral Scholar at Saarland University. Her research encompasses cognitive, communicative, and multimodal aspects of various types of discourses in the globalized world. In her previous studies Yuliya Stodolinska has focused on the portrayal of borders and border crossings in literary, media, and marketing discourses. Her scientific interests include Discourse Studies, Border Studies, Intercultural Business Communication, Cognitive Linguistics, Cultural Studies.

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Other recent articles in the TRAFO series War, Migration and Memory:

Natalia Zaitseva-Chipak, Ukrainian Forcefully Displaced Persons in Germany: To Stay or to Leave?, 27 July 2023

Olha Labur, Militarized Cancer: People with a Diagnosis and the War in Ukraine, 13 July 2023

Olha Haydamachuk, The ‘Emergency Grab Bag’ of Memory, or the Tonalities of News Headlines About the War in Ukraine – Part Twо, 22 June 2023

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CITATION: Yuliya Stodolinska, Cats in the Street Art of LBWS CAT UKRAINE: Constructing Cultural Memory in Wartime, in: TRAFO – Blog for Transregional Research, 17.08.2023, https://trafo.hypotheses.org/48274

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