The deficit and total poverty in the USSR had an amazingly strong effect on the man, prompting a useless ingenuity and an inclination to accumulate unnecessary debris.
In the modern Ukrainian society, those everyday and mental habits rooting from the socialist past still remain.
In 2018, people use the Internet and smart gadgets freely while continuing to do absolutely illogical things: with the arrival of winter they take out their carpets on the streets,
cover them in snow and beat them with a carpet-beater.
Paradoxically, the world's largest construction hypermarket in Kyiv offers its customers an ultra-modern TV along with a primitive wooden mop straight from the USSR.
To date, the impact of technical and intellectual progress on the society of post-Soviet countries has not been able to completely eradicate the methods of the Soviet citizen.
By analyzing concrete behaviour in modern Ukrainian society, I decided to make a nomenclature out of a series of cultural artefacts.
The method of instant printing was chosen in order for each picture to exist in a single copy, similar to the museumification of cultural heritage sites.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
1. According to one of the versions, the TV should be covered with a towel or a tablecloth to avoid surveillance by special services. A more modern version: to avoid harmful radiation after a viewing session.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
2. Using a plastic bag as a wrapper for the TV remote prevents the buttons from being erased and retains its original appearance.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
3. The financial status is indicated by a set of crystal set or a cognac bottle shaped as a fish displayed in a prominent place in the apartment. As a rule, such a set has never been used for its intended purpose.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
4. A disposable plastic bags are being constantly reused, washed and stored in a pantry in huge quantities. Often such bags serve as an additional accessory to a women's bag.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
5. De-dusting the carpets outdoors. Especially popular as a winter activity where the carpet is being covered in snow.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
6. The commemoration of the deceased is accompanied by the pagan tradition of leaving the food on a deceased's grave. Since the days of the USSR and to this day the deceased is 'given' a shot of vodka covered with a slice of bread.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
7. Old, worn pantyhose or stockings are used for storing onions.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
8. Collecting and storing large quantities of glass jars. Even if not planning to reuse them.
Polaroid Picture, 107mm x 86mm
9. The use of old, worn out things as rugs for cleaning floors. It is recommended to use them along with a wooden T-shaped mop.
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