Andrii Rachynskyi

Rachysnkyi’s work Notes. City Kh. consists of several components, which through different media describe Kharkiv, its residents, architecture, and, in particular, the signs and local lettering, i.e., the way that letters are designed. Videos, artifacts, photographs, and photo notebooks are designed to recreate the memory of the artist’s hometown, where he spent most of his life. He left it due to the full-scale invasion and only occasionally returned throughout 2022.

‘Foraging’, which is how Rachynskyi refers to documentation, archiving, and collecting, has a special place in the artist’s work. Images and other components collected by the artist become carriers of information that help form a diverse but also visual and tactile idea of the city, or evoke remembrance in those viewers who are familiar with Kharkiv.

The photos using the bromoil technique show little-known places that are important to Rachynskyi personally. He took these pictures 5–8 years ago, but for Notes. City Kh. modified them with AI and Photoshop. This emphasizes how the mind automatically completes fading memories.

It is important that Rachynskyi is a professional graphic designer, so studying fonts and visual design is an alternative method for researching the city for him. Kharkiv may be recognized through the signs; a careful look reveals the socio-cultural and economic contexts of urban history at a particular period. The war has left an indelible mark on the city, destroying even this cultural layer, which may appear insignificant at first glance.