Vyacheslav Kyrylenko's first steps in two government positions—Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Minister of Culture of Ukraine—have sparked a wave of public outrage. Some cultural figures have drawn their first conclusions: even Kulinyak, Yanukovych's former minister and personal violinist, never climbed onto his head or tied his legs in a bow so brazenly. The deputies are "old brothers" and a scandalous showman. By law, a minister must have four deputies. Kirilenko fired the entire team of Nishchuk, the Maidan representative in the government. Instead, he surrounded himself with his "old colleague from the time of the Revolution on Granite," Yuri Zubko, who had already worked in the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and was involved in resorts. By the way, Yuriy Zubko has two degrees, but neither of them is related to cultural policy: he studied at the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute and at the Law Faculty of the Kyiv National University. Taras Shevchenko. Kirilenko's deputy for European integration is Andriy Vitrenko. Master of Science in Finance, Foreign Economic Activity Manager. He worked as an expert at the non-governmental organization Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation, organized international exhibition events, and headed the office of a Member of the European Parliament. And at the end of November 2014, his resume was posted on job sites. The fact that he was appointed deputy minister was a surprise for Vitrenko himself. However, Kirilenko assures that his experience is sufficient and that a big advantage is that he speaks English and Polish fluently. Although for an educated person it is not yet enough to know four foreign languages. Kirilenko is planning to offer the position of third deputy to the provocative and obscene showman Anton Mukharsky (Orest Fevral) because of his "soft Ukrainization." “I believe that its soft Ukrainization, a modern, contemporary one, will be very strong for the ministry. “She is politically correct,” Kirilenko told Katya Osadchaya at the premiere of “Babay.” And he didn't even bite his tongue when, in a recent interview, he criticized Andrukhovych's works for their obscene language and suggested labeling such literature as not suitable for the general public. The revenge of a "professional slacker" And the strengthening of the ministry's leadership by First Deputy Igor Likhov became a "slap in the face" for museums. "A true professional. "He will lead the issue of museums, nature reserves, and the protection of cultural heritage," Kirilenko rubbed his hands with satisfaction as he appointed Likhovoy. A "true professional" has done so many "good deeds" in his time that not only can't you make porridge out of them, but it's better not to sit in the same field. The Ministry of Culture is like a sack of honey for Likhovoy. He had already headed the government of Yekhanurov and Yanukovych for a year. As Minister of Culture, he earned the nickname Professional Idler. In February 2014, he was one of Yevgeny Nishchuk's competitors when the government was being formed; his candidacy emerged in discussions about the future Minister of Culture. Then the staff of the National Art Museum wrote an open letter in which they explained who Mr. Likhovoy was. According to them, he is an “opportunist”, involved in the scandal at the Shevchenko Museum in Kanev, and worked at the National Art Museum under the acting scandalous gallery owner Tatyana Mironova has been appointed deputy director. "At the same time, Mironov actively assisted in the shadow distribution of funds, pressure on the team, and intimidation, allowing himself to make personal insults; after the management change, he was constantly on sick leave, obtaining false certificates, meaning he was effectively receiving a salary while being absent from work." In the end, Likhovoy was fired for absenteeism. The fight against professionalism On the eve of Nicholas, the desired power again fell into the hands of Igor Likhov. The official's first action was to call the St. Sophia Cathedral and, in a commanding tone, inform the National Reserve's Deputy Director for Research and Exhibition Work, Tatyana Zluya, that General Director Elena Serdyuk should prepare her resignation documents and submit a letter of resignation. Kirilenko confirmed Likhov's personnel changes on his Twitter account. “Considering the state of affairs in some museums and reserves, I will propose the dismissal of several directors. “I have already done this regarding the Saint Sophia of Kyiv,” the minister wrote. Sources in the Ministry of Culture say that the dismissal of the directors of the Kyiv-Pechersk Reserve, Lyubomyr Mykhailin, and the National Art Museum, "enemy number one" Likhovyi, and his professional ally, Maria Zadorozhnaya, is also being prepared. Elena Serdyuk took Likhov's threat philosophically. According to her, every revolution has a downside. After the rise, a counter-revolution occurs. “Perhaps our active work, our completely new forms of exhibition and display work, are causing discontent. After the New Year, we plan to announce our future strategy. "We've developed programs for museum development, open-access foundations, programs for children, and working with international foundations, such as our partners in France and Poland," Elena Serdyuk explains about her work over the past two years as CEO. In 2014, the Sophia of Kyiv Museum boasted successful, large-scale inter-museum exhibition projects, such as "Adrian Prahov's Kyiv Revelations," "Ukrainian Naive," and a project about Ukraine in the 30s. 2014 closes with an exhibition dedicated to Peter Mogila, who revived the Sophia in the 17th century. If Likhova secures Elena Serdyuk's release, all of Sophia of Kyiv's projects, from Easter and Christmas festivals to museum exhibitions, will be terminated. “The reserve has never done anything like this. There was a party here, nothing more. Only the cathedral was shown to the people. Copper of the wrong grade, thinner, was placed in the Metropolitan's House. Accordingly, she went her separate ways. For a whole year all we did was carry water in buckets. The 18th-century Zaborovsky Gate, where St. Nicholas's residence now stands, was never put into operation," Ms. Serdyuk reveals only the tip of the iceberg. There is no wall near Nicholas's residence. In its place there is a green fence and piles of bricks. “The wall fell in October. It's not on our balance sheet, but it fell on our side. It will be restored by the district administration. And we ordered a special study of the wall collapse. According to preliminary findings, there are many reasons for this. The building next to Sofia was built in 2008-2009. A lot of work was carried out on the territory of the reserve, and heavy equipment was used. There was also a chapel under the wall, which supported the wall. It was demolished. Another 15 meters of brick was removed from the wall on the Streletskaya Street side. “As soon as the project for restoring the wall is developed, it will be restored,” the director assured. But this is all just in the plans. And today, "Sophia of Kyiv" poses a threat of a hostile takeover of the reserve. When asked at Sofia whether it was known who the ministry was promoting to director of the reserve, Elena Serdyuk said briefly: "the predecessor." But when Elena Serdyuk was ready to sign her resignation letter, the director replied: “Someone needs to contact me officially. So far there has only been a call to the deputy. I have a contract for five years. On what basis should I interrupt him? This is already a violation of the law on the part of the ministry." The court weeps for the predecessors. In 2000, Nelya Kukovalskaya, a specialist in the construction of railway tracks and road infrastructure, was appointed general director of the National Preserve "Sophia of Kyiv". "I had to ask about the availability of accounting documentation, which was not there," Elena Serdyuk says of Kukovalskaya's activities. Reserve workers reveal the sins of the previous director. Scientific restoration work has not been carried out for more than 30 years. In the basements of the Saint Sophia Cathedral (the Refectory and the Bread Room), exhibits were rotting. Three thousand exhibits were affected by fungus. The opening of Yaroslav the Wise's sarcophagus, which was solemnly conducted by Kukovalskaya, was not without its violations. The bones from the sarcophagus were not accounted for or documented in any way. Tatyana Lyuta, Deputy Director for Research and Exhibition Work at the National Reserve, suggests that they were afraid that these were bones from different centuries. And he adds that the sarcophagus was damaged during the opening. And this is already a criminal case for which one must bear responsibility. Elena Serdyuk recalls that the UNESCO World Heritage Committee's requirements for developing a Management Plan for the site were systematically not met. But most of the looting took place in Crimea. For the past six months, the reserve’s commission has been inspecting the “Sudak Fortress Museum,” which is on the balance sheet of the “Sophia of Kyiv” along with the St. Andrew’s and St. Cyril’s churches and the “Golden Gate.” It was revealed that during Kukovalskaya's tenure as general director in Sudak, there was no system for maintaining records of museum collections. Archaeological materials from excavations of the Sudak fortress from 1997 to 2012, some from 1965 to 1973, a total of 8623 units, were not accepted into state registration. Collection materials were transferred to the Hermitage for restoration without documentation, and were never returned. The commission identified the absence of 523 items from archaeological collections from archaeological excavations carried out between 1996 and 2000. Where they are is unknown. Museum workers submitted the collected information to the prosecutor's office. After all, whoever you are, a director or a simple worker, it’s worth remembering: if you can’t do any good, then at least don’t do any harm. And when you have already done something wrong, have the courage to take responsibility for it. But the Ministry of Culture, it seems, hasn’t heard about this.
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