[Ukraine Respects Shevchenko – Kyiv Day]

Celebrating the dodransbicentennial (175th Anniversary) of the birth of Taras Shevchenko.

This rare and engaging broadsheet was published in 1989 by the Soviet ‘Youth’ Magazine for public display to celebrate Kyiv Day. That year’s theme commemorated the 175th Anniversary of the birth of Taras Shevchenko, considered by many to be the father of modern Ukrainian literature. A schedule of events, list of program features, and credits for a theatrical performance are printed in the negative spaces, while a simple outline map of Kyiv notes the local transportation options. A portrait of the author, poet, artist, and politician, complete with magnificent handlebar mustache, is visible in the upper right.

Kyiv Day was first celebrated in 1982 to mark the 1,500th anniversary of the city’s founding. This poster marks one of the final celebrations under Soviet authority – the Ukrainian revolution began the same year (1989) and two years later the dissolution of the U.S.S.R. led to Ukraine’s independence.