About us

Artists’ initiative to the military

Cultural Forces founded in March 2022 immediately becomes a resolute response from the country’s cultural and creative community to the full-scale invasion.

An initiative providing moral and psychological support to combat units both at the front and in the rear is rapidly bringing together service members and volunteers from the creative professions, many with direct combat experience. Before the war, they were professional musicians, world-class performers, directors, designers, architects, and visual artists. The initiative’s innovative model of engagement with the military has received broad support from the General Staff. At the same time, its civilian component — a new type of organization in its own right — is driving artistic projects in frontline communities and across de-occupied territories.

Psychological and emotional support for service members on the front line, together with the restoration and development of the country’s cultural foundations, shaped the direction of the Cultural Forces’ work in 2022–2023.

From an initiative to a platform

The strong demand for this work transformed the initiative into a broad cultural platform dedicated to bridging military and civilian experiences of war. These experiences have become an important tool for representing Ukraine’s interests internationally. Over time cultural diplomacy has developed into a distinct pillar of the platform’s work. By combining combat experience with creative expertise, our members are able to engage effectively with a wide range of international audiences.

The cognitive domain of war

Our accumulated experience demonstrates how crucial the battle for people’s minds and perceptions is during wartime. How we think about ourselves, about the enemy, and about the world around us determines our ability to win. So does how each of them thinks about us. We must engage with these perceptions, emotions, and beliefs. To reach them, we must reach people’s hearts—and artists know the way. The artist is the key unit in cognitive warfare.