Ukrainian novelist given digital residency at University of Chichester

A Ukrainian novelist and poet living in one of the country’s once-besieged cities has secured a digital writing residency from the University of Chichester.

Award-winning author Volodymyr Rafeienko, who cannot leave the country due to its conscription laws, will be sharing his experience of war. The multi award-winning author, who originates from Donetsk, is now stationed in Ukraine’s Ternopil city, which was bombarded with missile strikes at the start of the conflict.

The digital residency, which begins in October, is a collaboration between the University, the Rathbones Folio Prize and the Stephen Spender Trust and is supported through the UK/Ukraine Season of Culture, by the British Council and the Ukrainian Institute.

Novelist Volodymyr said: “In times of peace and hours of war, literature retains its constant purpose. It is the means of recreating and preserving the human in humanity. It’s harder to write in war, but that’s because living through war is also much harder.

“There are two important parts to the residency: the first is to write and work, perhaps to teach. Secondly, it gives me the chance to be heard by students, colleagues, people who are not indifferent to Ukraine and the problems of culture in Europe – that is people who are open to understanding.”

Recognised in Ukraine as one of its leading writers, Mr Rafeienko wrote in Russian until fleeing the Donetsk region to Kyiv, following attacks by Russian-backed separatists in 2014.

In 2019 he published his first novel in Ukrainian, Mondegreen (songs about death and love), published by Harvard University Press, with whom he will be publishing a new novel next year. The book has since been shortlisted for Ukraine’s highest award in arts and culture. He also translated Nobel Prize-winner Svetlana Alexievich’s famed War’s Unwomanly Face into Ukrainian.

His digital writer in residency, hosted by the University of Chichester’s humanities department, was organised by Reader in Creative Writing Suzanne Joinson, herself a prize-winning novelist and non-fiction writer.

She said: “We are delighted to welcome Volodymyr to our University. As he cannot leave his country we have created remote ways of engaging that include video link-up events. He will meet MA and UG creative writing and literature students to share ideas and thoughts on his essays and novels and writing in general.

“This is a unique residency and his incredible literary talent and passion for writing will prove inspirational not only for our students – who will learn directly from him – but anyone who has become engaged in Ukraine since the start of the devastating conflict.”

The University will host a public talk with Volodymr in November in partnership with Rathbones Folio Prize and Suzanne is working with The Stephen Spender Trust who are developing a series of workshops for primary and secondary schools in which children of all background will read and translation Ukrainian poems and picture books. Alongside these workshops, Stephen Spender Trust’s translators will work with young Ukrainian refugees in schools.

Photo credit: University of Chichester.