Artists Against War: The Visual Language of War. An Interview with Daria Michri

Svidomi in collaboration with Artists Against War, an online gallery of posters created to support Ukraine after the Russian full-scale invasion, tell the stories of the artists who help Ukraine by means of art. Read an interview with the illustrator Daria Michri.

— What did you do before February 24?

— I am a designer and illustrator, by education and by heart. The last project I was working on before the beginning of the full-scale invasion was creating identity for an upcoming HR conference organised by one of the job search portals in Ukraine. I was in Kyiv on a short trip.

— And what city did you live in?

— I lived in Kyiv for two years, but in 2021 I had to return to Kharkiv though Kharkiv is not my hometown. I was born in Dnipro; I lived in the Donetsk region for ten years. Originally, I am from Crimea: "Michri" is a Karaite surname; Karaites are one of the authentic ethnic groups in Crimea.

It is painful for me to remember those events now. When I was going on the short trip to Kyiv, there was already tension in the air concerning the full-scale war. I thought that this time it might begin, so I took my dog with me.

—  Did you expect that there could be a full-scale invasion? Did you have your go-bag packed?

— I packed my documents and money in a box by Ksenia Schnaider brand; they look like pizza boxes (laughing), wrapped it with tape, sent it to my sister and said: "If something happens, we will meet, and you will give it back to me." I had with me only the documents of a citizen of Ukraine, and the documents for my dog. My sister said I was overpanicking.

— Can you describe your day of February 24 and the events that followed?

— The day before, I had a false start. One morning in Kyiv, I heard some sounds similar to the sound of an air siren. I woke up and told my dog: "I'll go look out of the window now, and if something is happening, we're going." I went to the window and realised that it was the hydraulics of a garbage truck. Therefore, when I woke up to the sounds of explosions on February 24, I went to the window, heard the sound of car alarms, and did not understand what was really going on. It was like the story with the garbage truck, so I went back to sleep.

I woke up when my sister called. It is a very bizarre story when you understand what is going on, but you can't articulate it yourself. I had a strange conversation with my sister. I pick up the phone, and she goes:

— Why aren’t you answering?

— And why are you calling me so early?

 — Well, we are worried about you, you are there in Kyiv, and we are here in Kharkiv.

— And so what?

My sister can't articulate it, and neither can I.My partner and I calmed down and decided to take care of the things we might need so as not to leave the city. I spent the first ten days in Kyiv in a bomb shelter of a residential complex. On February 25, when I was going down to the bomb shelter, I already took my tablet with me. I realised that I was just constantly scrolling through chats, and there was no use in it: I felt nervous and unable to make any influence. I started drawing, first of all, for myself. When I have an idea, I get immersed in the process, and the anxious thoughts disappear. It kept me going.

— And then you left Kyiv?

— I evacuated to the city of Vinnytsia, then I lived in Ivano-Frankivsk, and after that in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. Vinnytsia is a fabulous city, and it’s a shame that Vinnytsia has never been my dream destination before. Ivano-Frankivsk, the Carpathians, Lviv, Dnipro, Kyiv, Odesa, the Azov and Black Sea coasts — these are the dream destinations for Ukrainian tourism, these are the cities that attracted me. And now I want to say to all the residents of Vinnytsia and to the city itself: "Thank you very much, my best respects to you, and I'm sorry that I had no idea how beautiful and interesting this city is."The war makes us discover Ukraine in a different way — positively — and it’s a shame that it is done this way. You can be surprised with how incredibly beautiful it is, and how many interesting things there are.

— Have these thoughts inspired you to create a collection of posters with different cities?

— Well, the collection of posters with cities began when I drew a "tourist" postcard from North Korea for Russians, because, apart from the "resorts" of North Korea, no one else was waiting for them. The postcard was in Russian, with an original typography similar to that on funny Asian printouts. When it became clear that Russians would not get "Kyiv in three days", I made another postcard: "Original Tour: See Kyiv and Die." Some Russians got lost somewhere near the city of Hadiach, and the local forestry called for all hunters to shoot the enemies. So I drew "Hadiach Safari" as a joke.My aggression was over, I made these three posters with sarcasm. I realised that I could not move on with aggression. Then I started creating posters of support, and highlighting hero cities that were suffering from hostilities. First, a poster with Kharkiv was born, because I lived there for 14 years.

Later we got to know about Kherson, about its residents who, despite the occupation and terror, are resisting and declaring that they are Ukraine. Then — Mariupol, Chernihiv, Hostomel, and I started communicating with my followers. They were telling me which cities needed support. I was drawing posters, I based them on local sightseeing places and jokes. The posters were more about how strong these cities were than how they were suffering.In late March, I planned to draw Bucha, Irpin and Hostomel — these cities were like shields for Kyiv. When they were de-occupied, and we got to know about the atrocities of Russians, I dropped out of my work process. I returned to work only in May, because I could not find any strength to draw.

Also viral went my poster "Palianytsia" that I made in the first days of the war when the jokes about palianytsia and polunytsia were all over the Internet. I released the first version of the poster on the Internet without copyright marks. Telegraf.Design published it, and people started forwarding screenshots looking for the author, because the poster was cool. Then I published it in my profile with copyrights and explanations, and also uploaded it to Artists Against War. It is still in the bestsellers’ list.

— You mostly draw posters. Was there any additional sense to it, such as that people would use them at rallies or mass meetings?

— This is an ordinary form of communication for me, and I have been working with this format for a long time. You can print it, hang it on the wall, or you can go to a rally with it. It is a good chance to make a statement, because a poster is a convenient form of expression.

— Have you noticed any feedback from people from other countries?

— There was an interesting experience when I participated in the exhibition of Ukrainian artists in Hamburg and Zittau. I was invited to exhibit my posters with cities. I thought this whole story would not be interesting for foreigners, because it is something almost unknown to them. I was surprised when everyone bought the posters: the Ukrainian diaspora who live there, but also the locals. It got to the point that the posters were taken off the wall. For people, it was an opportunity to make a donation, to support an author from Ukraine, and to express their position.

— Now the emotions are not as wild as at the beginning. How does the seventh month of the full-scale war affect your creativity?

— Now I am more focused on being useful. I used to make a lot of donations, but stopped when there were 7 UAH left in my bank account. I can’t go on like that, because I have myself and a dog for which I am responsible. Artists Against War write to me saying that they are waiting for new images, but I do not understand what I should base myself on, what I should say, and what I want to highlight.

I am drawing illustrations, the ones more graphic, sketchy. One of the most recent was about Olenivka. The penal facility is not far from my parents' hometown where I spent my childhood, where my sister was born, and where my grandparents live. This topic should be covered, but I haven't found time to do something powerful yet. I am focused on building my future and being useful for Ukraine. I have some ideas, but I can't implement them yet. Every day of the war brings new emotions, feelings, and ideas. Maybe there will be some posters or illustrations, but only when I find some time.

— In your opinion, what is the role of art in a war?

— Art is not only illustration, it is not prose or poetry. Art is all manifestations. It is a distorting mirror that reflects what is going on. Art will always play a role, artists will always be on top of things, they will be the first to speak, to collect the pain, and show it in an interesting form. A real artist never stands aside, he/she always takes the opportunity to express himself/herself.