Mural Painting of the Church of the Savior at Berestove: Semantics. Stylistics

Alina Kondratiuk, Ph.D.

The first half of the 17th century is known as a crucial point in Ukrainian culture. Active development of intellectual, cultural and artistic life in Kyiv Metropolitan See contributed to appearance of several famous artistic monuments. Among them one can find unique monumental ensemble - the murals of the Church of the Savior at Berestove, executed in 1643–1644 by Greek painters.  
The mural painting of the Church of the Savior is very important for understanding of characteristic features of Ukrainian spiritual life of the early modern period. This painting is unique; it does not have analogues in Ukrainian artistic culture of that time.  
The style of the murals of the Church is typical for Orthodox post-Byzantine tradition (even the most of the text followed the compositions is written in Greek), but in the complex theological program of the ensemble new baroque ideas were expressed. The studies of the murals of the Church of the Savior are also important because of the prominent role of this monument in the formation of new style of Ukrainian Art of Baroque.
The main research question of the current project is how the old traditions of Byzantine art combined with new renaissance and baroque tendencies to create new style of Ukrainian murals. I plan to pay attention to the complex theological program of the monumental ensemble, worldview of potential audience and influence of the murals on further development of Ukrainian Orthodox art.