Poetry is an ethereal material, but nevertheless it can influence millions of people: it can encourage, create an atmosphere, to agitate or just an understanding of the particular important things. The most accurate way of saying about a purpose of person, which has decided to connect his life with poetry, had given Mahatma Gandhi: «A poet is a person who has a strength to awaken the good, which is hidden inside the humans chest». About a role of poetry in a life of a person a team of Zhytomyr.Travel had asked a citizen of Zhytomyr Oksana Hadzhyj, a poetess, designer, an art-director, a person who is eager to make the world more beautiful
«In my childhood, from the age of five-six, I used to think that I will certainly become a writer when I grow up, that I have no other choice.( Laughs). My parents both are programmers, so in the beginning they reacted calmly «you want, so you want». Later on when I was entering a course to become an editor,I was strongly recommended to become a programmer,as it is «much more perspective». And even though I am ok with all the technical staff, I said: «No, I am going to do whatever I want, that’s it»
«Sometimes more or less, I was always connected to literature somehow. I had some funny and naiv publications at the age of nine and thirteen in Zhytomyr newspapers. At that time it was extremely important for me. So I grew up clearly understanding this. I mean even now when I am asked (though I haven’t written for year and haven’t seen anyone) my true basis will be poetry. And everything apart… Design is a craft, but I love it too,as it is connected with my desire to better the esthetics in a common sense. And poetry is that determines myself»
«These days I am in Zhytomyr fiftty/fifty: I live and work and Kyiv,and spend the second part of the week in Zhytomyr. Besides that I am engaged in poetry, I work for a publishing house «Our Format» as an art-director,I am making out the books. I studied at the Zhytomyr State University named after Ivan Franko at the course of the philologist-editor. At some moment, I realised that though I am really interested in subject, I had lots of pedagogics and the staff alike, which wasn’t for me. I realised that I could waste long years in vain, and took a courage and entered a course in advertisement and PR. As a matter of fact,there was no such course in Zhytomyr,so I went to Kyiv. Well from that very time I am here and there»
«You have to give your time to your artwork as to any other thing that brings you pleasure. You can say that you have no time, spending three or four hours for television or social networking sites. If you consciously contol your time, so it’s enough»
«I am very pragmatic. A stereotypical vision of a person of art, who is totally torn apart from the everyday life is in some way true, and in some no. My position is connected with an artwork, but it demands lots of organisational skills: I work with another twenty freelance designers. For everything to be done in time, and to be liked by everyone the organisational skills are needed, and I have them. It doesn’t interfere my artwork, it just helps it»
«A poetry is much dependable from inspiration, but when it comes to those things that need some perseverance-about design, art or writing a novel-it demands a lot of organisation. Day by day you have to force yourself to write. A poem can be written in an hour-you have sat, wrote and is waiting for another inspiration. All in all, art is a work,it must be approached in an organisational way»
«A push for an inspiration is usually is some emotional situation: an emotional rise, or a fall, which can be caused by whatever reason. As in a common normal person a mood can get better or worse-some hormones or something else…Something happens-good or bad-maybe the other person had told you something and you roll this thought in your mind. Every kind of art is a psychotherapy, as someone «rolls» these words in mind and gets sick because of that,gets depressed and the other person just transforms it in art»
«A poetry is often seen useless. And that us really cool. An artist Louidgi Serraphini ( the auther of «Codex Serraphinianus» – an encyclopedia of an imaginary world) during one of the interwieves mentioned that he doesn’t consider himself as an artist. He considers himself as a poet, as poetry is the last thing in art that is not connected with the money. Well there is a temptation, especially in cinema and art, when it comes to recognition, to go about the masses. When lots of people start to buy created pictures and watch the filmed movies, they start to demand sonething simplier from the artist or a film director, as usually they demand a repeatance. And at that moment any creativity stops. And the masses do not need poetry, it is needed only for a narrow circle of people, and so it can’t stop a creative development of the author. Actually the one can go into a dong lyrics, but in the majority of cases, because of the lack of the consumer, who usually dictates the rules, a poetry remains itself,and so develops very fast. It develops not because of love of people, but in contrary to it»
«As a matter of fact, poetry depicts the social problems: as any other kind of art it is an art of an epoch, and a poet us influenced by the outside factors. An artist stands in the context of the events that are happening, and he lives through them. Poets, artists, and people who are engaged in art are very often socially active people. We know in a historical context, that firstly were the artists, scientists and public figures exposed to all the executions and persecutions. The other thing is that a poetry mustn’t be ideological and to instill the ideas, as it was during the Soviet Union era. I think it’s wrong»
«It can be heard to much pathetic, but the work of my life is an education of an esthetic sense. Even though I influence an understanding of beauty in a one person it would be great. And so I did everything not in vain. That’s why I am engaged in literature and art-direction. These are different things but they both work for the same: for people to be able to distinguish between good and bad, even between a good design of a book and a bad one. We have a huge problem with that we are usually surrounded by the unbeautiful things, by people who don’t care about their appearance, designs which were made «for tomorrow»…We are surrounded by the ads slogans, but not poetry. And that deeply influence people, they don’t just have an esthetic sense, they simply not ready to percept art in itself. Obviously, to observe modern or postmodern art, the one needs a preparation. A classical music isn’t loved and understood by everyone. Yes,it is pleasant for an ear,but to get an enjoyment from it, you have to understand what is going on…If people are not used to reading a classical literature,more realistic one,for example Tolstoy, so later on they wouldn’t be able to get an enjoyment from reading Kafka. At first you have to learn to perceive simple things, and then more complicated»
«Very often happens that the teachers themselves do not understand postmodern, they don’t understand either modern art, or a literature in its wide meaning. And if you don’t love it, so it’s impossible to assure the others that it’s great. When a person doesn’t love his job, it is seen,it is felt, and kids can’t love that is showed them as something bad»
«I was lucky, I studied in a good school – in Zhytomyr liberal arts school number 23-and I have good remeniscences of my studying. We had a really cool approach, especially in a high school-like in university. We weren’t forced to do something, we were more engaged in collaboration, not just demanded a silly learning without any understanding. Sometimes it was seen that the teachers didn’t understand something, that they liked something more or less, but it’s ok when it’s not imposed. For a teacher or just a person who works with other people, the worst trait is to have too much of self opinion. If you read a lot, study, consider yourself as an expert and is able to evaluate, so you will surely impose your ideas. And at this very stage a creativity of the students is killed. Perfectly, studying should contain a joint reading of works, familiarisation and expression of thoughts. If a teacher doesn’t like something that’s great. He can tell the reasons why doesn’t he like it, but it doesn’t mean that every one shouldn’t like it. An openess for that kids can have other (and sometimes much more correct) thoughts, but only yours and wrong, for our system is absolutely unacceptable. And these things are killing. Especially when they are connected to such fragile things like art. When a teacher thinks that Picasso isn’t beautiful, so the students will think so too. We do not say that something can not be understood, we say that a thought is being imposed. For instance: «He was drunk and he painted this. You have to know that I consider it a garbage. You have to think this way too»
«Our teacher knew a lot about the antiques, so I got a lot of enjoyment from all that we studied, that even for passing my graduation exams I chose the world’s culture and philosophy…We were taught to think. When we were studying a meaning of culture, and how it has appeared, she didn’t tell us: « people just wanted the culture to exist» or « people just wanted to leave something after them». She was really leading us to the thought, till someone finally got it, that personality creates culture when it realises its own mortality. And for the ten-formers a realisation of the appearance and development of the culture, it’s inextricable link between life and death- was something really cool. And this thought wasn’t imposed, it was formed during the discussion. We had to think of such complicated things by ourselves»
«Zhytomyr Poetical School» as term is highlighted. There are lots of poets who come from Zhytomyr. In fact, when in «Portal» there was a presentation of the «Anthology of the young Ukrainian poetry» which was published by «A-Ba-Ba-Ga-La-Ma-Ga» it coincided that among not a huge number of the participants of that anthology (there were about 70, I don’t remember exactly), seven or so were from Zhytomyr. That is really much. It’s a kind of a coincidence, as the styles are quite different, though it is obvious, that this is a modern poetry. But there is also such a thing, that we come from the different literary organisations, which were in Zhytomyr some time ago. In the end of the 90’s in the beginning of the 2000’s (maybe till 2010) there were strong organisations «Not a something» and «Oxia», which were directed only on an avangard and modern literature. They had a lot of the educative components. I went to «Oxia» from my school years, and it wasn’t just for fun. Every Thursday we used to meet and write our poems that we had written by this time, or something new. We discussed them in every detail, like «in this place there is a great image, and in this one the rhyme is bad». And for the young poets, especially for the students, it was extremely useful. That organisation for my understanding of a modern literature gave even more than school (though we were taught great), mainly because everything was explained and discussed. That’s why Zhytomyr Poetical School had formed. Now the young people who can be notable in the poetical surroundings of Zhytomyr I can’t see. It is caused by that such organisations don’t work anymore, and they are really needed»
«In Zhytomyr we lack such a place for all the creative people to be in, for them to get acquainted with each other, to start doing something, and then to involve new people,and they could learn from each other…In fact there are lots of such places in Europe-there are different art centers, residents. In Ukraine,I think,there was one of this kind. It was done during «Gogol Fest», and it was really useful, it was an abandoned factory, where all the artists in different areas were held. Those were theaters, moviegoers, photographers, literators and musicians. At the intersection of these kinds of art they did a lot of interesting things-they worked greatly»
«Zhytomyr lacks a high level. And it is much more complicated than a place. Theoretically it is easier to give one abandoned place or a room in a house of culture-to give people the keys, so that they could come up and create. But we have no high level, no high demand from the audience. Because of this we observe the works of a low quality, a medium quality festivals and programs,as it will go this way, as that we have is better than nothing. And such thing is the most dangerous as it stops the development. And it is caused in its turn that we don’t have a beautiful surrounding: billboards, demands for service, no bookshops. And people behave according to the surrounding… Till we don’t get very high demand to the events, programs, that are held, there wouldn’t be no development»
«For an every activist who has a big or a small idea to do something in Zhytomyr, I think, there are the most painful questions: money and motivation, which are closely connected…Money is an ephemeral thing, but you will always find them if you will make an effort. And we have it this way: I want to invite a band who asks a fee in 5000, and for the equipment rental I have to pay 15000. And so I need 20000 and I go to the City Council. And there they tell: «We can give you only 10000». And then we summarise: «It wouldn’t work». Thats it. It is very good when city helps, but it is not the only source. We forget, that there is money in business, in grants,and in foundations-they exist and they can be found, when even the only person who collects will a fire in his eyes. It is really sorry, but a question of motivation stands far much more complicated. There is a thought that the one cannot do something in Zhytomyr as there is no money. There is money, but there is no motivation, there are no people who can assure that they are really needed»
«A thought that an artist should always be hungry is a widely known lie. An artist shouldn’t be hungry, but vice versa…The Maslow’s piramyd hasn’t been cancelled, and till our lower needs are satisfied, we can not satisfy the high ones. The more possibilities not to think about the household items, the high the cultural level is. Noone will read a book, or paint a picture if he has nothing to eat,or no money to but paints. Now I don’t fell that in Zhytomyr there is problem in a job choice. There is job, but the people who want to work is the other question. It seems to me, that there are more vacancies,than those who are eager to work»
«I have a dream that once I will open a literary bar in Zhytomyr. I really hope that one on Mukhailivska street (instead one of the second-hands) there will be a so-called bookshop where you will have an opportunity to drink coffee, wine or something, to listen to jazz and to perform. You can simply come up, without any orders, just to sit an take your time. I would like to do that, but obviously, as it would be a place when you can hang on, it would be unprofitable. And in fact, for that the one should have lots of money and lots of enthusiasm. Very often I think about that, I even had thought of the name, how it would look like, its interior. I don’t know whether it will happen – I wouldn’t stand all of that alone, even in the organisational questions. I simply don’t know, how this kind of business works, but I would really love to have such a so-called bookshop-bar»
«I like to be both in Zhytomyr, and in Kyiv. Zhytomyr relaxes and fills, and Kyiv exhausts me a lot. It demands speed, development and fast reaction. Zhytomyr demands nothing, except having a rest. But if you have some demands to yourself, some efforts to change something, ambitions, so Zhytomyr moves very slowly, and this low tempo works against the town. For here to change something, the one should push a lot, make huge efforts and to gain in return very small changes»
