Writers silenced by Stalin are given new life amid war in Ukraine

In Ukraine they are known as the “executed Renaissance,” pioneering literary artists whose lives were snuffed out by Stalin’s brutal purges in the 1930s.

These writers, poets and directors, who lived together in one apartment building and devoted themselves to experimental art forms, pioneered a flourishing of Ukrainian culture and identity about a century ago.

But this golden age was short-lived. The Soviet regime soon began monitoring, arresting, and eventually executing about half of the writers in an attempt to suppress Ukrainian culture. For decades her works were banned and her legacy almost erased.

Until now.

In light of the Russian invasion, the story of the executed Renaissance has gained new traction as many Ukrainians seek to reclaim their cultural heritage. The authors’ lives are told in a musical, a feature film and a memoir. There’s even a clothing line based around her, with sweatshirts riddled with bullet holes to symbolize her murders.

“This is a big trend,” said Yaryna Tsymbal, the author of “Our Twenties,” an anthology of Ukrainian literature from the 1920s. She said demand for projects about the artists comes “from everywhere: publishers, magazines, theaters.”