The Hidden Canon:
Ukraine’s Literary Iconoclasts
The Hidden Canon: Ukraine’s Literary Iconoclasts
Illustration by Anastasia Starko with Ukrainian authors* for The Kyiv Independent
Special project by the Ukrainian Institute and The Kyiv Independent.
About the project
“The Hidden Canon: Ukraine’s Literary Iconoclasts,” a project backed by the Ukrainian Institute, unveils bold Ukrainian classics long hidden from international readers. These writers defied censorship, reimagined cultural identity, and pushed the boundaries of art itself — showing that Ukrainian literature is a daring, vital, and unforgettable part of the global literary canon.
Themes and Authors
“The Hidden Canon” is a series of articles based on recommended lists of Reading Guides compiled by Ukrainian and foreign literary scholars.
The series also unveils translated excerpts and interviews with leading literary scholars to introduce international audiences to eight key figures of Ukrainian classical literature.
Coming Soon
Mykhailo Semenko (1892–1937)
The futurist who tried to blow up tradition – sometimes literally – dragging Ukrainian poetry into the electric pulse of the European avant-garde.
Coming Soon
Mykola Khvylovyi (1893-1933)
The modernist whose fragmented, cinematic prose fused revolutionary ecstasy with existential dread, foreseeing both the promise and the terror of the 20th century.
Coming Soon
Vasyl Stus (1938–1985)
The poet who transformed suffering into ethical clarity, writing himself into world literature from inside a prison cell.
The articles are authored by Kate Tsurkan, an American journalist, editor and translator who discovered Ukrainian literature years ago and has since written extensively about it for international media.
Our partner
The Kyiv Independent is award-winning and Ukraine’s fastest-growing English-language media outlet created in November 2021, just three months before the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Our partner
The Kyiv Independent is award-winning and Ukraine’s fastest-growing English-language media outlet created in November 2021, just three months before the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.
* A collage, from right to left: Ukrainian authors Volodymyr Vynnychenko, Mykhailo Kotsiubinskyi, Olha Kobylianska, Panteleimon Kulish, Sofia Yablonska, Mykhail Semenko, Vasyl Stus, and Mykola Khvylovyi. (Anastasia Starko / The Kyiv Independent)