Abstract
As a result of globalization processes, the lives of average people are nowadays filled with uniform products. In Ukraine, contemporary clothing featuring national markers stands out from among the wide range of cultural and artistic trends. Ukrainian academics are currently studying the specific features of the diffusion of traditional clothing into everyday urban life. A knowledge of the historical path of the penetration, adaptation, and development of traditional Ukrainian clothing within the urban cultural system is necessary for an understanding of its modern transformation processes. An examination of the theoretical model of the diffusion and development of nationally marked clothing from 1861 to 2020 reveals that, in the context of urbanized culture, the spread of Ukrainian clothing is subject to five factors: social and economic, religious and ritual, identification (patriotic), cultural and artistic, and design and production. Within each subperiod, namely 1861–1920, 1921–1990, and 1991–2020, these factors have influenced clothing culture to varying extents, and their content is transformed in accordance with the historical circumstances. In addition to the publication of the above developments in scientific journals, considerable efforts to popularize them are also being made. Several thematic lectures have been given on the influence of the above-mentioned driving forces at different historical stages, accompanied by the multimedia presentation of prominent members of the Ukrainian intelligentsia posing in Ukrainian attire. The ZETA Atelier clothing manufacturing team produces collars embroidered with Ukrainian folk motifs, which became fashionable among Ukrainian intellectuals in the early 20th century. Collaboration based on the educational platform of the clothing brand Zerno has given rise to the idea of producing a line of stockinette T-shirts with prints of historical photographs of the Ukrainian cultural figures previously featured during lectures and presentations. The aim is to shape a contemporary urban culture of nationally marked clothing via the introduction of national images into consumer practices.
Introduction
The rapid development of information technologies is essentially intensifying globalization processes. Unified production has gained ground, in the sphere of both material use and cultural-spiritual life. Mass manufacturing produces typical items, oriented to the demands of consumers in any country, without taking specific cultural experience into account.
The emphasis on economic and technological expediency during the design of objects for mass use, the mechanization of production procedures, and the significant dissemination of cosmopolitanism ideas have led to the standardization of consumer goods. This has given rise to a demand for the diversification and individualization of the meaningful content of articles for personal use, including clothing. A wide range of cultural and artistic trends is being developed in Ukraine in terms of fashionable clothing, and modern Ukrainian style is distinguished by its scale and diversity. National clothing style is a dynamic phenomenon, with its roots in traditional folk culture and national history. It has also been influenced by global artistic styles at various stages in history. Ethnologists and art critics have long focused their attention on the study of traditional Ukrainian peasant attire, which came to symbolize the national costume. The theoretical principles of the formation of Ukrainian national costume as a phenomenon of folk culture were formulated in the 19th and 20th centuries by ethnologists, folklorists, anthropologists, and art critics.1
Ukrainian academics are faced with the task of studying the characteristic features of the spread of traditional clothing into everyday urban praxis. The urban cultural system has developed according to a paradigm that differs from the rural paradigm. In the village lifestyle, most personal requirements were implicitly satisfied by means of the natural production of food, clothing, housing, etc. The norms governing the outward appearance and clothing within the village commune were also regulated by definite local canons. The urban lifestyle differed from the rural lifestyle. The shaping of the urban way of life was associated with the rejection of agricultural work in the interests of pursuing various kinds of professional, intellectually based production activities. Life in the city implied the existence of specific social and cultural mechanisms for the functioning of society (Vermenych 2011:107–108). The vast majority of modern Ukrainians live in cities. Urban-style culture may conditionally be considered as being oriented toward the accessibility of the general attainments of civilization: education, medicine, professional fulfilment, the satisfaction of the principal requirements for personal self-realization, etc. This kind of urbanized culture can be considered dominant in both the cities and villages of modern Ukraine, which is why the study of the specific nature of urban clothing culture is a relevant task for Ukrainian ethnology.
The present paper explores the principal aspects of the historical penetration, adaptation, and development of traditional Ukrainian dress in the urbanized cultural system. It describes opportunities for the application of theoretical knowledge in the realization of two modern projects related to the production of clothing featuring national markers.
A theoretical model of the development of clothing with national markers among urban Ukrainians
A theoretical study of the spread of nationally marked clothing within city life is essential in order to gain an understanding of the modern phenomena related to its transformation. For the purposes of the present paper, clothing with national markers includes all possible variants of clothes that express a connection with Ukrainian culture, from folk costume to fashionable dress in Ukrainian style. Between 2013 and 2017, we focused on identifiying the principal factors that led to the widespread presence of clothing with Ukrainian markers in the city from the mid to late 19th century to the early 21st century.2 The city of Kyiv was chosen for the research, as the center that influences the main development trends in Ukrainian city life and shapes the cultural canons and clothing standards that other cities attempt to emulate. The results of the investigation have been published in the form of a monograph (Oliynyk 2017b). The discussed theoretical model for the spread and development of nationally marked clothing includes the determination of the main mechanisms of social and cultural life — that is, factors that contribute to the appearance, adaptation, and transformation of traditional Ukrainian clothing in urban life. The present paper covers the period from 1861 to 2020. The choice of the earlier date is connected with industrialization — the active development of industrial production in the cities, and the liberation of the peasants in the Russian Empire in 1861. The closing date of the period, 2020, allows for reflection on present-day reality and the revival of the Ukrainian tradition of clothing with national markers. The source base comprises text, images, illustrations, material sources, field-based materials, and data visualizations available on the Internet. The broad time frame, from the second half of the 19th century to the beginning of the 21st century, means that distinct groups of sources predominate in the research of the different historical periods. Narrative written sources are particularly valuable, as reminiscences, diaries, and letters provide an opportunity to identify individual attitudes to clothing with Ukrainian markers and give a clear sense of what the person wearing such clothing was attempting to convey. Memoirs alone make possible the reliable determination of the nature of the identification (patriotic) factor (Oliynyk 2015c). The graphic sources include catalogues, practical manuals for the production of nationally marked clothing, fashion journals, sketches of models, and photographs. Material sources include Ukrainian clothing or components of costumes, as well as urban interpretations of folk attire, preserved in museums in Kyiv. The field-based materials are valuable for the study of the modern uses of clothing with Ukrainian symbols. A survey was carried out among the inhabitants of Kyiv between May 2014 and 2020. The transcripts of 103 interpreted interviews are held in the Scientific Archival Fonds of Manuscripts and Audio Recordings of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, M. Rylskyi Institute for Art Studies, Folkloristics, and Ethnology, while part of the field materials have been published in a collected volume (Skrypnyk ed. in chief 2018:234–246). These materials provide information about the respondents' experiences concerning the use of clothing with Ukrainian markers, examples of its emergence, the social situations in which it was used, and personal attitudes towards the importance of Ukrainian dress in the respondents' lives.
In the context of urbanized culture, the spread of clothing with Ukrainian features can be said to have been motivated by five driving forces: social and economic, religious and ritual, identification (patriotic), cultural and artistic, and design and production. Three historical periods can be distinguished: 1861–1920 (the pre-revolutionary period); 1921–1990 (the Soviet era); and 1991–2020 (the modern age of Ukraine's development as an independent state). Although the influence of the five factors can be discerned throughout the three periods, their content changes depending on the historical circumstances. The extent to which each factor influenced clothing culture also varies. The five driving forces are briefly outlined below.
The social and economic factor
The social and economic factor refers to the impact of the economic situation on the lives of individuals and society. The economic component is also related to the inaccessibility of uniform, mass-produced urban clothing, which gave rise to the need for handmade clothes. As a rule, such clothing featured ethnic markers. Traditional clothing was widely used among peasants during the pre-revolutionary period, and the adoption of European dress by Ukrainian peasants was only finally completed in the 1950s (Fig. 1).
Peasant clothing from Chernihivshchyna at the market in the city of Kyiv, drawn by Yuriy Pavlovych in 1894 (Skrypnyk ed. in chief 2010:230)3
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Besides the economic component, migration is also included within the social and economic factor. Our research into urban culture indicates the importance of the peasants for city life. Peasants regularly travelled to the city to sell the foodstuffs they had produced. Picturesque images were created of peasants returning to the village after selling their wares in the city (Fig. 1). With the development of industrial enterprises, a significant number of rural migrants moved into the city in search of work. As a rule, women looked for work in the services sector, as housemaids or nurses (Skrypnyk ed. in chief 2010:134, 169–171).
In the Soviet period, the impact of the social and economic factor was attenuated due to the difficult historical living conditions of the Ukrainian peasantry, mistakes in Soviet policy, and the terrible human losses and devastation following the First and Second World Wars (Oliynyk 2015с). Typical ethnic features in the clothing seen in images of peasant migrants can be observed up until the 1950s. The use of traditional dress among the middle and older age groups of the population has been connected with the preservation of inherited behavioral stereotypes and an unwillingness to change their established lifestyle (Fig. 2).
Everyday clothes worn by urban maids from the village at the market in Kyiv, drawn by Yuriy Pavlovych, 1896–1930 (Skrypnyk ed. in chief 2010:134)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Today, the influence of the social and economic factor on clothing culture has shifted from the material to the spiritual plane. Despite the loss of consumer relevance of traditional clothes, rural residents continue to keep them in family trunks for sentimental reasons. This latent form of the existence (or functioning) of folk attire as the object of memory has contributed to the preservation of national identity in Ukrainian families. Respondents from the older age group (45 years and over) who were connected with rural culture understood the importance of the presence of Ukrainian folk clothing in personal experience. This has been actualized in the demand for clothing with Ukrainian markers in modern urban practice. Some of the respondents who were interviewed in Kyiv explained how the wearing of nationally marked clothing was motivated by a desire to preserve the traditions of the region in which they were born (Oliynyk 2017b). The migration component has had an impact on the actualization of regional clothing traditions in urban culture, while the migration of Ukrainians throughout the world has contributed to the emergence of the presentation of Ukrainian cultural phenomena through national dress — most frequently the vyshyvanka shirt. In 2019, the author of the present paper recorded an interview with the Halaktionov family, who, throughout their life in emigration, occasionally wore clothing with Ukrainian markers to symbolize their national identity (Fig. 3).3
Clothes worn by a Ukrainian emigrant living in the Netherlands on a visit as a tourist to the Italian city of Syracuse, 2016. (Photo: private archives of O. Halaktionov)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
The religious and ritual factor
The religious and ritual factor is connected with the church calendar and with religious and family ceremonies. Peasant pilgrimages to Christian churches can be considered a prominent urban phenomenon in the pre-revolutionary period (Fig. 4).
Clothing worn by peasants visiting a church, drawn by Yuriy Pavlovych, early 20th century (Skrypnyk ed. in chief 2010: 378)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Popular celebrations of holidays in the Christian calendar were accompanied by folk traditions before the introduction of the atheist communist regime. These celebrations also included customs related to clothing. Groups of kolyadky and shchedrivky singers, for example, gathered for the Christmas holidays in winter, while at Easter people had willow branches blessed and baked Easter cakes. All these activities were accompanied by the wearing of folk costume (Oliynyk 2016a). The wearing of ethnic clothing for the celebration of such events was established even among city residents.
An antireligious campaign, which included the persecution of priests and the suppression of churches, was launched after 1920. However, certain traditions, such as the singing of kolyadky and shchedrivky, were continued as private, amateur performances (Fig. 5).
Ritual performance by kolyadky singers at Dmytro Pavlychko, Kyiv, 1980 (Photo: private archives of Z. Kucenko.) (https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1538993679464000&set=t.100000601490847) (accessed September 18, 2020)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Freedom of conscience was revived after 1991, when Ukraine gained independence. Alongside the celebration of Christian holidays, the rites of traditional folk culture are observed. Traditional costume has become a conditional dress-code for such observances (Oliynyk 2017b). Family ceremonies, such as christenings and weddings, are often accompanied by the use of Ukrainian attire (Fig. 6). Although it is not our intention to undertake a comparative analysis of the existence of folk clothing in the context of urbanization in other countries, it is important to emphasize that, in the research carried out by Ágnes Fülemile, the church, as the center of spiritual and cultural life, was shown to have an established influence in supporting traditional community life, including Hungarian folk costume culture: “Another trend-like change is that festive formal wear has been simplified in such a way that the once-ordinary errand-running outfits could be worn to church on major holidays. (It is not about the quality of the material, but the selection of garments needed to assemble the outfit itself.)” (Fülemile 2020:153).
Clothes worn by invitees to a wedding celebration, Kyiv, Ukraine, 2020. (Photo: private archives of T. Shevchuk)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
The identification (patriotic) factor
This factor belongs to the sphere of spiritual life and is the result of the complex and lengthy process of obtaining an understanding of national identity. This driving force is shaped by society's reflections concerning the categories of ethnos, culture, and statehood. Among certain urban representatives, perceptions of ethnic or cultural — and, after 1991, civil — attachment to Ukraine are accompanied by the demonstration of their convictions regarding external appearance, especially clothing.
The deliberate wearing of Ukrainian clothing with the aim of demonstrating one's own patriotic views is connected with the spread of democratic ideas and the Narodniks movement, which emerged in the second half of the 19th century. The movement developed under the influence of the wave of European national democratic revolutions known as the Springtime of the Peoples or the Springtime of Nations in 1848–1849 (Matiukhina 2006; Makohin 2011). Ágnes Fülemile wrote of the appearance of the “brightly expressed political coloring” of the clothing of the gentry in the Kingdom of Hungary under the influence of the Springtime of the Peoples (Fülemile 2017:53).
It was then that Ukrainian intellectuals began to wear folk clothing — not as a result of economic necessity or established custom (Yekelchyk 2006; Vil'shanska 2009:118; Oliynyk 2014; Pavlenko 2020). The use of Ukrainian clothing was part of a deliberate effort to demonstrate unity with the Ukrainian people. Figure 7 shows a young urban Ukrainian lady sporting a Ukrainian look that combines traditional items of clothing (embroidered shirt and corset) with fashionable European clothes (crinoline skirt). The photograph illustrates the modernization of Ukrainian costume by combining elements of it with fashionable clothing. The memoirs of Lyudmyla Starytska-Chernyakhivska recount the ideological significance of asserting national identity by the wearing of Ukrainian clothes in her youth (Fig. 7).
Lyudmyla Starytska in Ukrainian costume, Kyiv, 1882. Photo from the archives of the Museum of Outstanding Figures in Ukrainian Culture, MMS KN–1045, Fo–182
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
The concept of ethno-identification conveyed by clothing featuring Ukrainian symbols underwent changes during the era of the Ukrainian SSR. The Ukrainian embroidered shirt was adapted to the image of the Soviet individual, along with a weakening of the expression of national allegiance. New images of the party nomenclature, public figures wearing Ukrainian embroidered shirts, appeared in the mass media, a fact that formally assured loyalty to Ukrainian culture. At the same time, two approaches to the ethnic and cultural reading of the traditional embroidered shirt can be distinguished among Ukrainian intellectuals. The first was shared by adherents to the latest industrialization of lifestyle. They explained their somewhat indifferent attitude to folk clothing by their reluctance to present Ukraine through the symbols of rural farming culture. The second approach was characterized by approval of the Ukrainian shirt, which became a stock element in the clothing worn by proponents of urban culture (Oliynyk 2017b:175). The beginning of the 1950s saw the weakening of the pressure exerted by the totalitarian system on the life of society. Modern Ukrainian clothing was an expression of civil position in the context of self-aware intellectuals. It was only the generations of dissidents and Sixtiers who renewed the functional expression of Ukrainian identity by the wearing of Ukrainian folk clothing, despite persecution by the regime. The desire to be identified as Ukrainian women was manifested by the political prisoners who decorated their uniforms with traditional embroidery (Fig. 8).
Clothing worn by women political prisoners. Permanent exhibition of the Museum of the Sixtiers. Kyiv, Ukraine, 2016. (Photo by Maryna Oliynyk)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
According to the results of a field survey carried out by means of 103 interviews, the informative meaning of Ukrainian costume for the modern urban population includes concepts such as national identification, connection with folk culture, the preservation of family traditions, the protection of customs, and a high level of artistic execution. The Ukrainian embroidered shirt known as the vyshyvanka can be considered the most widespread existing component of traditional costume. The trend of celebrating birthdays, anniversaries and cooperative holidays in the national style was first conceived in the sphere of private life. A social norm has emerged that involves the wearing of Ukrainian folk costume on significant dates, such as Kyiv Day, Vyshyvanka Day, Constitution Day, Independence Day, and Ukrainian Cossacks Day. The Ukrainian vyshyvanka has become an effective means of national and patriotic education during the realization of school activities, including Knowledge Day and the Holiday of the Last Bell. The Revolution of Dignity and the defense of Ukrainian sovereignty, as well as the realization of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (the Donbas war), later referred to as the Joint Forces Operation, became a turning point for many Ukrainians in their understanding of Ukrainian identity, prompting them to express their standpoint outwardly through clothing featuring national markers (Oliynyk 2017a:178–179). Today, one can observe the strengthening of the functional influence of the expression of ethnic belonging. Furthermore, an all-Ukrainian identity now predominates over regional identity. The mufti of the Clerical Board of Ukraine's Muslims, the clerical leader of the Donbas Muslims Said Ismagilov, posted a photograph on Facebook on the occasion of the 2014 celebration of Eid al-Adha (Kurban Bayrami), in which he is wearing a Ukrainian vyshyvanka and Muslim religious clothing (Oliynyk 2017b:212–213). Today, Ukrainian clothing has become the reflection of both ethnic belonging and the conscious patriotic positioning of national minorities in Ukraine (Figs 9 and 10).
The mufti of the Religious Administration of Muslims of Ukraine “Ummah” Said Ismagilov wears a Ukrainian embroidered shirt to demonstrate the national identity of the Ukrainian political nation. Kyiv, Ukraine, 2020. (Photo by Maryna Oliynyk)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
A Ukrainian vyshyvanka decorated with the Star of David. Kyiv, Ukraine, 2019. (Photo by Maryna Oliynyk)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
The cultural and artistic factor
Artistic events featuring national markers have become an important platform for the adaptation of folk clothing to the urban context. New social situations involving the use of folk costume have developed according to three trends, starting from the second half of the 19th century. The first trend encompasses the development of this use in private life, meaning Ukrainian artistic gatherings. The second trend concerns events in social life, such as the emergence of public activities in honor of prominent Ukrainians, and thematic festivals or fairs. The development of professional art is a third trend in the evolution of the use of Ukrainian clothing in urbanized culture.
Theater can be considered the center of cultural life in the pre-revolutionary period. The expansion of the Ukrainian repertoire prompted the use of Ukrainian clothing among both actors and theatergoers. Amateur Ukrainian theater became widespread, while activities requiring the use of traditional clothing also appeared in everyday urban life. Days devoted to T. Shevchenko and the anniversaries of outstanding figures in Ukrainian culture were of peculiar importance (Fig. 11).
Matinee performance in honor of Taras Shevchenko, Kyiv, 1909. (Photo: Archives of the Museum of Outstanding Figures of Ukrainian Culture MMS Kn–1065, Fo–202)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
The first precedents for the organization of Ukrainian evening entertainment and open-air amusements appeared in the early 20th century. However, the process of creating a secular tradition for the use of folk costume could not be fully developed, since legalized gatherings with a national coloring could only be organized with the permission of the state authorities of the Russian Empire. However, cultural and artistic life stimulated the persistence of the urban tradition of using Ukrainian attire in everyday life (Oliynyk 2015a).
Ukrainian art developed along the lines of socialist realism under Soviet rule. It was required to be national in form and socialist according to content. People began using Ukrainian traditional costume to represent national culture during the realization of official Soviet activities, such as party congresses and demonstrations on the occasion of International Workers' Day and October Revolution Day. Amateur performances were considered an important aspect of cultural and artistic life and became a niche area for the preservation of Ukrainian ethnic cultural identity during the period of the building of socialism. Although the use of old folk costumes to depict national character was not encouraged, simplified, sham performances became widespread. Despite the simplistic image of traditional clothing, stage shows and amateur performances can be considered important driving forces for the continued existence of folk clothing (Fig. 12).
The use of Ukrainian stage clothing in an amateur performance during a demonstration on November 7, 1957. (Photo: private archives of D. Hladun)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Attempts to revive the celebration of folk holidays in the ritual calendar began in the second half of the 1960s. The organization of such events encouraged the use of Ukrainian traditional attire. In a paper presenting her research into the Dance House movement, Katalin Juhász described how an enthusiasm for folk dancing tradition among the Hungarians influenced the revival in the popularity of Hungarian folk attire. Such studies are important with respect to the present topic, as they confirm the effective influence of cultural and artistic factors on the existence of folk clothing and its modification in the context of urbanized culture (Juhász 2017).
The fashion for Ukrainian folk-style clothing emerged in the 1960s and 1970s in connection with the success of entertainers and the use of such items in stage costumes in the national style (Matviyishyn 2014). Ágnes Fülemile demonstrated in her paper how similar processes could be observed in Hungary in the 1970s (Fülemile 2020:163).
There is an interesting story connected with the word vyshyvanka as a modern ethnic cultural trend. The term is known from at least 1855.4 However, this specific item of underclothing was traditionally referred to by the name “embroidered shirt.” The word vyshyvanka, which is generally used nowadays to denote a shirt featuring Ukrainian embroidery, was only adopted into everyday vocabulary following the performance of the song Vyshyvanka, with lyrics by M. D. Som and music by O. A. Sandler, by a trio of bandura players in the 1963 musical comedy We Were Going, Going….
The festival movement, marches in folk costume, and World Vyshyvanka Day are nowadays hugely important in artistic life. The Day of the Ukrainian Vyshyvanka is a new tradition, only recently included in Ukrainian ritual culture. In 2006, Lesia Voroniuk, a student at Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University, proposed wearing the Ukrainian vyshyvanka on an ordinary weekday, the third Thursday in May, in order to revive the folk costume tradition (Fig. 13). In 2008, the initiative was taken up by other educational institutions in Ukraine, and in 2016 Ukrainians from more than 50 countries joined in the tradition. The holiday acquired the name World Vyshyvanka Day. Lesia Voroniuk has rightly pointed out that the ethnocultural phenomenon of the vyshyvanka has been adopted in the foreign language arena as an original term through the transliteration of the word vyshyvanka rather than translation based on a similar word for embroidered shirt (Satenstein 2016).
World Vyshyvanka Day in Kyiv, 2015. (Photo by Maryna Oliynyk)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Museums of ethnography carry out significant cultural and educational work, including the recreation of folk rites, the organization of Ukrainian evenings with the participation of folklore groups, the curating of exhibitions of folk costume, and the hosting of educational lectures and other events.
The design and production factor
The design and production factor is connected with the practical experience of producing clothing with ethnic markers. Demand stimulates production, and market supply stimulates consumption. This factor consists of two components. The first is the amateur production of clothing by hand, while the second takes the form of professionally organized production. The involvement of specialists in the production of clothing with national markers has contributed to the development of the fashion for ethnic style and has expanded the variety of Ukrainian-style patterns. The hand embroidery of such clothing has always been popular among all strata of the Ukrainian population. The first patterns for fashionable clothing in Ukrainian style appeared at the beginning of the 20th century (Oliynyk 2015b). According to Katalin Juhász, the use of Hungarian folk motifs in designs for fashionable clothing also began in around 1906 to 1908 (Juhász 2017).
The popularization of clothing featuring Ukrainian markers among the proponents of urban culture involved a chain of activity. The initial activity was the investigation of traditional Ukrainian dress by means of collecting antiques, creating museum collections, and curating expositions. This contributed to securing the status of folk dress as the national costume, representative of the Ukrainian identity. Secondly, the Kyiv Handicraft Society and the zemstvo of Poltava Province collaborated in their efforts to provide information and technological, organizational, and financial assistance for the establishment of workshops and centers for the manufacturing of clothing in the Ukrainian style. Thirdly, the opening of permanent warehouses in Kyiv and Poltava can be considered a key moment, making it possible to sell these products and meet consumer demand. Fourthly, a promotional campaign was launched in the print media (Fig. 14) aimed at disseminating information about the clothing among wide circles of urban consumers (Oliynyk 2018).
A dress and coat in Ukrainian style that could be ordered via a catalogue (Catalogue of Wares 1912)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
The design and production factor continued to influence a new line of updated Ukrainian attire during the Soviet period of Ukrainian history. Modified versions of men's and women's Ukrainian shirts appeared as the outcome of creative research by handicraft specialists and the drafting of new design-technological proposals. These articles of clothing became popular in urban life, and the archaic forms of traditional costume gradually fell out of use. Fresh impetus in the development of the new socialist society created a demand for easily useable, functional items, and the Ukrainian embroidered shirt was best suited to meet such demand.
The new urban Ukrainian men's shirt was tailored according to the urban fashion, although the front was still made in one piece, without central fastenings. Traditionally, there is no opening down the front of the shirt, recalling its ancient protective properties. As for the women's shirts, the main changes were related to the transformation of the long shift dress into a chemise or blouse reaching to the hips. The folk-style cut was also adapted for city blouses with the introduction of a raglan sleeve, although in the case of the women's blouses, too, the front continued to be made in one piece, without a front opening. The range of women's clothing also included dresses, designed according to the fashion and decorated using traditional embroidery techniques in a creative reinterpretation of Ukrainian ornamentation. The modernization of the Ukrainian shirt contributed to the popularity of embroidered shirts among wide social circles, as well as to the emergence of Ukrainian-style fashion (Oliynyk 2015с; Melnyk 2019). In the second half of the 20th century, the designing of contemporary clothing based on Ukrainian folk dress was elevated to the level of a state task in the development of light industry (Fig. 15).
Dress in the Ukrainian style, 1964 (Boiko 1970:23)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Folk master craftspeople made a significant contribution to the preservation and development of the production of traditional Ukrainian attire. The Masters' Days regional holidays are held at the National Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine, where one can purchase the components of folk costume. As a rule, specialists and practitioners in the traditional trades make an effort to wear Ukrainian clothing at such events, which lends a certain prestige to the folk master craftspeople.
We are currently witnessing the strengthening of the design and production factor. The amateur production of clothing by members of the population remains a significant leisure pursuit among the urban population. The embroidering and sewing of clothes are regarded as a vital opportunity for developing the respective skills, and many communities of embroiderers have been formed via social networks. Purchasing ready-made clothes from master craftspeople or specialist shops selling ethnic wares, or ordering them via the Internet are the most popular means of acquisition among the majority of modern city inhabitants. Ukrainian designers offer a wide range of modern patterns in terms of clothing featuring national markers (Fig. 16). They have also endeavored to create a new version of the Ukrainian vyshyvanka as a fashionable brand, which is sold successfully (Satenstein 2015). The penetration of clothing with Ukrainian markers into foreign secular life can be regarded as a means of disseminating a modern image of Ukraine.
Clothing in Ukrainian style developed by the designer Olenka Didyk (https://www.facebook.com/%D0%A2%D0%B2%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%87%D0%B0-%D0%BC%D0%B0%D0%B9%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B5%D1%80%D0%BD%D1%8F-%D0%9E%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%BA%D0%B8-%D0%94%D1%96%D0%B4%D0%B8%D0%BA-1524891837569763/photos/pcb.3657942770931315/3657938310931761/) (accessed May 12, 2021)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Three types of clothing were investigated in the researched period. The first comprises traditional rural costume; the second consists of a combination of pan-European or fashionable dress; while the third encompasses new, fashionable clothing with typical Ukrainian markers.
This classification corresponds almost exactly to the approach adopted by Katalin Juhász, who researched three types of Hungarian clothing with national markers. The first was made up entirely of folk costume from head to foot; the second consisted of hybrids of classical items with fashionable accessories; while the third referred to ethnic fashion (Juhász 2017).
Modern projects for the popularization of Ukrainian markers in clothing
The present-day academic community in Ukraine is involved in the organization of activities for the popularization of scientific studies. Several thematic lectures have been presented concerning the influence of the factors analyzed above, visually illustrated with photographs in which outstanding figures from the Ukrainian intelligentsia are depicted wearing Ukrainian attire. These lectures are aimed at audiences interested in expanding their knowledge of the specific characteristics of Ukrainian culture in the field of ethnic clothing.
The project Embroidery in the Clothing of Eminent Ukrainians was recently implemented in the form of collaboration among museums, academics, embroiderers, and the World Vyshyvanka Day association. The project was initiated and directed by Tetiana Zez, an internally displaced person who was forced to migrate from Donetsk to Kyiv because of the military actions in the east of Ukraine.
The author of the present paper acted as voluntary scientific adviser to the project, which was aimed at the popularization of Ukrainian ethnic culture through biographical-artistic research. The final result of the project was the publication of a printed album on the use of embroidery in the clothing of famous Ukrainian intellectual figures (compiled by Zez 2020). The edition is intended mainly for the community of embroiderers. The stories and embroidery schemes are presented as separate leaflets. An article written by a museologist about the famous person and a photograph of the contemporary item of clothing are presented on one side of the leaflet, while the other side features a photograph of a newly made piece of clothing decorated with embroidery inspired by the contemporary item, along with the respective embroidery scheme. Following the publication of the leaflets, a presentation was organized at the museum, including talks by museologists and a display of the embroiderers' work (Oliynyk 2020a, c) (Fig. 17).
Presentation of modern versions of clothes produced in the framework of the project Embroidery in the Clothes of Eminent Ukrainians. Chernivtsi, 2021. (Photo by Maryna Oliynyk)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
The activities implemented during the project Embroidery in the Clothing of Eminent Ukrainians confirm the relevance of the impact of the five factors outlined above on the development of the culture of clothing with ethnic markers. The social and economic factor, for example, is associated with migration among a population distinguished by certain clothing-related ethnocultural stereotypes. In the modern period, this factor is reflected in the inclusion of project participants from various corners of Ukraine, from Halychyna to Slobozhanshchyna. The events organized in the framework of the project gave rise to a lively interchange of ethnocultural knowledge and experience.
The religious and ritual factor encompasses the formation of a modern ritual tradition, actively influenced by embroiderers through their popularization of clothing production. Clothing assumes significance in relation to the rites associated with life events and calendar cycles — for example, infants' layettes for puerperal rites, and the vyshyvanky used in the celebration of events in the religious calendar, such as Christmas and Easter.
The identification factor was considered to be the most powerful within the project, since it is aimed at cultivating the conscious use of clothing with national markers. In the present project, this took the form of clothing featuring similar decorations to those used on the contemporary attire worn by outstanding historical intellectual figures.
The cultural and artistic factor is related to the collaborative organization — involving academics, museologists, embroiderers, and consumers — of presentations of contemporary objects from museums and newly sewn items of clothing.
The artistic factor took the form of the development of original embroidery schemes and the organization of master classes for embroidery lovers.
A second project, Thanks for the Language, involved cooperation with the educational platform of the clothing brand Zerno. Designer and brand owner Khrystyna Patyk proposed a line of stockinette T-shirts featuring prints of historical photographs of Ukrainian cultural figures. These items were displayed at a presentation given by the author of the present paper, and a new business project was thereby launched in collaboration with academia (Oliynyk 2020b) aimed at shaping a modern, urban culture of nationally marked clothing by way of introducing awareness of the historical use of Ukrainian clothing by famous Ukrainians into modern consumer practice (Fig. 18).
Display of T-shirts by the Zerno brand in the framework of the project Thanks for the Language. Kyiv, 2019. (Photo by Maryna Oliynyk)
Citation: Acta Ethnographica Hungarica 66, 2; 10.1556/022.2021.00027
Conclusion
The present paper has investigated the process of the spread of Ukrainian traditional clothing into the social and cultural space of the city from the second half of the 19th to the early 21st century, using the example of Kyiv. Both pan-European-style clothing and clothing featuring Ukrainian markers have been found in urban everyday life. Ukrainian clothing culture has developed according to two tendencies in the context of social and cultural interaction. The first tendency involves the transmission of traditional culture into urban life by means of the migration of peasants who wore traditional Ukrainian costume in their everyday lives. The social and economic factor in terms of the spread of folk clothing included labor migration among the peasants who moved to the cities in search of regular work. Many people also regularly commuted into Kyiv from the suburbs and neighboring villages to sell the wares they had produced themselves. The impact of the social and economic factor shifted to the spiritual plane following the peasants' rejection of folk costume. This refers to the preservation of historical memory and traditions within the family. The religious and ritual factor was aimed at motivating the use of folk clothing in the celebration of calendar rituals and family events. The second vector of the penetration of Ukrainian folk clothing into urban everyday life is associated with the use of clothing with national markers among the proponents of urban culture — namely the aristocracy, intellectuals, and petty bourgeoisie. The third factor – that is, the informative function of the expression of Ukrainian identity by means of clothing — had a fundamental impact on the course of this phenomenon. The cultural and artistic driving force for the use of Ukrainian traditional clothing is connected with the development of the theater, intellectual life, entertainment, and nationally inspired thematic evenings. Such events in ethnocultural life presented a new social context appropriate for the wearing of clothing with national markers. The design and production factor ensured the amateur and professional production of such clothes. The effectiveness of the theoretical model was tested during the implementation of the project Embroidery in the Clothing of Outstanding Ukrainians by the ZETA Atelier, and the project Thanks for the Language by the Zerno brand.
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Maryna Volodymyrivna Oliynyk holds a PhD in history and is a research fellow at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, M. Rylskyi Institute for Art Studies, Folkloristics, and Ethnology. She obtained her PhD in 2017 with the thesis Traditional Clothing of Ukrainians in Everyday Urban Life: Mid to Late 19th – Early 21st Century (based on Materials from the City of Kyiv). Her monograph on the topic was published in 2017. Her academic interests and fields of research include traditional Ukrainian clothing, the history and current state of Ukrainian clothing culture, and the development of nationally marked clothing in the context of urbanized culture.
A detailed analysis of the historiography can be found in Oliynyk 2016b, 2017b:6–46.
The author of the present article wrote and defended the thesis Traditional Clothing of Ukrainians in Everyday Urban Life: Mid to Late 19th – Early 21st Century (on the Materials of the City of Kyiv) for her PhD in history, speciality 07.00.05 – Ethnology, in the context of her postgraduate studies at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, M. Rylskyi Institute for Art Studies, Folkloristics, and Ethnology.
Yuriy Pavlovych (1874–1947) was a Ukrainian ethnographer and artist. His sketches of city and village life provide valuable visual documentation of historical reality. Many of the artist's drawings are held in the Department of Archival Scientific Fonds of Manuscripts and Phonographs, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, M. Rylskyi Institute for Art Studies, Folkloristics, and Ethnology.
The word vyshyvanka is defined for the first time in Slovar’ malorusskogo narechiya, sostavlennyi A. Afanas'evym-Chuzhbinskim: Tetrad’ 1 [Dictionary of the Ukrainian Dialect, compiled by A. Afanasiyev-Chuzhbinskiy: Part 1]. Saint-Petersburg: The Second Department of the Imperial Academy of Sciences, 1855:61.
