Dariia Kuzmych

In my project, I study the experiences of Ukrainian defenders who got injured in combat as they navigate their ways through medical systems. It underscores individual paths of recovery and restructuring in the context of overloaded medical infrastructure resulting from war’s inherent rhythms. Grounding my project in interviews and interdisciplinary workshops with veterans in various rehabilitation centers and hospitals in Ukraine, I investigate diverse healing and reconstructive processes. I map how, as a counterpoint to trauma, the imaginative and creative process, and humor as well, can open the potentiality of oneself on a new path, after being survived. My work with veterans informs a broader structural framework that I apply in conceptualizations of the war temporalities. I aim to convey the ways individuals overcome, integrate, and grow from war losses, contributing to a deeper understanding of trauma, recovery, and time’s nature. My research focus materializes in artistic workshops and series of works which synthesize collected knowledge in forms of texts, videos, drawings and collaborative works with participants. One of the main outcomes – integrating of the developed method in rehabilitation process – is currently in development.

 Website: https://dariiakuzmych.com/