Shadows

of Remembered Ancestors

Volodymyr Kish

One of the highlights of the Toronto Ukrainian Festival last week was a stunning exhibition of Hutsul photographs by a talented Ukrainian photographer from France by the name of Youry Bilak. In a series of several dozen large photographs, he manages to capture the essence of a way of life that is rapidly disappearing from the famed Carpathian highlands of our mother country. The Hutsuls that populate this unique and scenically magnificent corner of Ukraine are probably the last of the regional ethnic sub-groups that constitute the Ukrainian race that have managed to hold on to much of their historic tradition, folklore and way of life into the current century. But as Youry found out during a series of visits over the past six, seven years, they too are now feeling the effects of ever-encroaching modernization and technology, and that spurred him to capture their rich and unique way of life while it is still a living entity and not something to be found only in museums, literary recollections and modern re-creations.

As one who has lived in Ukraine in recent times, I can testify to the fact that much of what we venerate as Ukrainian culture and tradition is now relegated to historical memory. I can still recall my textbooks from Ukrainian school with richly illustrated pictures of life in the selo or village, with its thatched roofs and idealized, rustic way of life. The villagers would gather at end of day by the river and sing old traditional folks songs, dressed in richly embroidered clothes. There would be glorious images of dashing kozaks sporting scalp locks, and the traditional Ukrainian minstrels called kobzari singing of glories past while playing their banduras. We would be taught old folk dances, just “like they did back in the old country.”

The truth of course, is that this stylized picture of Ukrainian life has very little in common with contemporary life in Ukraine and in reality reflects something that is at minimum centuries removed from reality. Those thatched roofs and picturesque whitewashed selo houses are now only to be found in museum settings in Ukraine. Those spectacular Ukrainian dances that we enjoy seeing here in Canada by groups such as Shumka are far removed from the rustic folk dances of our ancestors in the selo, and are more the end result of the evolution of choreography and showmanship in the past century. The young folks in the village do not gather at the river in the evenings to sing old folk songs, but are more likely to gather at the club or disco to listen and dance to modern rock.

The exception to all of this until recent times has been the region of the Carpathian Mountains of southwestern Ukraine and the indomitable Hutsuls that live there. More than any other Ukrainian regional ethnic group, they have managed to maintain much of their traditional culture and way of life despite the political turmoil and modernizing pressure of the past century. No doubt, part of that is due to the fact that their geography has served to isolate them somewhat from external influences. Yet, I think probably just as important is the fact that the demanding challenges of living in the highlands has inculcated in them a strong, independent ethos that has enabled them to withstand the political, cultural and technological pressures that have so transformed the rest of their fellow Ukrainians.

Youry Bilak has managed to capture much of that character and spirit in his photographs of Hutsuls both young and old. In a time where a lot of the Ukrainian embroidery and folk artifacts that most tourist buy in Ukraine carry a Made in China label, the Hutsuls have so far tenaciously held on to their artistic and cultural heritage.

Nonetheless the onslaught of modernity and technology is making headway even there. Cell phone coverage now extends into many of the Carpathian mountains and valleys. Televisions are to be found in even the most isolated mountain huts. Tourists regularly invade the Hutsul territories by the busload, and developers are building ski resorts on what used to be the domain of grazing goats and sheep. The Hutsuls are fighting a rearguard battle that can only have one outcome in the long run.

In the meantime, Bilak’s photographs provide us with a memorable snapshot in time of what I like to call living shadows of remembered ancestors. Enjoy them, and if you have a chance, make the effort to visit the Hutsul area of Ukraine while there still is a living and genuine Hutsul culture.

You can find some of Youry Bilak’s stunning photographs on his website: http://www.yourybilak.com/