2026 marked 12 years since Russia started a war against Ukraine, and 4 years after the full-scale invasion. Wiki Loves Monuments Ukraine, the national part of the international photo contest Wiki Loves Monuments, continues to document the toll of Russian invasion of Ukraine for the cultural heritage. This text presents the results of the 2025 War Destroys Monuments special category, and talks about the plans for the 2026 edition of the contest and special category.
“Based on data collected as part of the ‘Open GLAM in Ukraine’ project, we have documented the experience of 554 Ukrainian GLAM institutions during Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine. I presented these findings at Wikimania 2026 in Paris in the form of a poster. It showcases how galleries, libraries, archives and museums are continuing to digitise their collections, preserve cultural heritage and collaborate with Wikimedia, despite destruction, occupation and constant security threats.
Documenting and sharing this knowledge openly is one way of making sure that the memory and stories connected to cultural heritage remain accessible, even when the physical objects or places themselves are at risk.”, shared Svitlana Vyslinska, Project manager for Open GLAM in Ukraine at Wikimedia Ukraine, “Unfortunately, the need to preserve and document Ukrainian cultural heritage remains urgent, as the number of damaged and destroyed sites continues to grow — according to the latest information from the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, 2138 cultural heritage sites were damaged or destroyed due to ongoing Russian attacks…”
Over 100 photos of damaged heritage sites from ten regions of Ukraine were submitted to the “War Destroys Monuments” special category in 2025. All photos from the special category can be viewed here.
“‘War Destroys Monuments’ is the most emotionally difficult category in the contest, and we shall be running it for the fourth time this year. We try to recruit jury members from outside Ukraine, because raising international awareness of Russian crimes against Ukrainian cultural heritage matters to us. In 2026 e we managed to organise photo exhibitions of the 2022–2025 entries in Germany and Italy, and we are very grateful for the support we have received from Wikimedians to do this”, said Olga Milianovych, a member of the organising team of Wiki Loves Monuments Ukraine, press secretary at Wikimedia Ukraine.
The 2025 jury was made up of Wikimedians from several countries:
• Brian Sciretti (Italy);
• Nursultan Tengge (Kazakhstan);
• Ahmad Ali Karim (Malaysia).
The jury recognised 14 photos by 6 authors across 6 regions of Ukraine — Odesa, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia oblasts and the city of Kyiv. First place went to three photo series that vividly document the destruction of a religious building, an educational facility and a government building.
“Educational Buildings Under Fire: Kharkiv Region”
First place among photos of damaged educational buildings went to a series of three images of the Real School building in Izium, Kharkiv Oblast. The photographer is Serhii Bobok. The photos were taken in September 2022.
The Real School in Izium is a local-significance architectural landmark, built in 1882. After being destroyed by retreating German forces in 1943, the building was rebuilt in 1950–1951 and later housed a secondary school. It was severely damaged in 2022 during the Battle of Izium.
A photograph from this series was shown at an exhibition in Frankfurt (Oder), Germany, in early 2026.
“I photograph destruction constantly — it is part of my work. I think it is important to document the state of historical buildings, especially those we are losing or might lose. It is a small contribution to preserving memory, but a contribution nonetheless. All the more so now, when, due to security restrictions, not everyone has a real opportunity to do this — for me it is somewhat easier because I have accreditation from the Armed Forces of Ukraine and some training for working in combat zones.”
“Since I have this opportunity, I have to use it to help illustrate Wikipedia”, commented Serhii Bobok, Wikipedia contributor and photographer.
“Government Buildings in the Crosshairs: Kyiv”
A series of photos showing the destruction of the Government Building of Ukraine took first place among photos of administrative buildings. The photographer is Volodymyr Tarasov. The photos were taken on 25 September 2025. Volodymyr joined the contest for the first time in 2025.
The Government Building of Ukraine is a local-significance architectural landmark — a 10-storey historical high-rise and the largest administrative building in Kyiv, built in the Stalinist Empire (monumental) style. Constructed in 1936–1938, it has housed the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine since 1991 (and previously the Cabinet of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR from 1990). Between 1941 and 1954, after the destruction of the Ginzburg Skyscraper, it was the tallest building in Kyiv.
“Paradoxically, because of the absence of freedom of panoramain Ukrainian copyright law — that is, the right to freely photograph, draw or film works of architecture and art located in public places, and to publish such images or videos — photos of the Government Building of Ukraine cannot win in our contest. Under current law, artistic photos require permission from the heirs of co-author Pavel Abrosimov, who died in Moscow, and whose descendants somewhere in Russia could demand money for any use of a photo of the Cabinet of Ministers building. But Volodymyr Tarasov’s series documents ‘current events’ — the consequences of damage to the landmark caused by a Russian Iskander-K cruise missile that hit the roof and upper floors — so these photographs can legitimately be used to illustrate Wikipedia articles”, explained Mykola Kozlenko, member of the contest’s organising committee, and administrator of Ukrainian Wikipedia.
“Churches at War: Odesa”
The jury awarded first place among photos of damaged churches to a black-and-white series of three images showing interior and exterior destruction at the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odesa, caused by a Russian missile strike on July 23, 2023. The photographer is Pavlo Shubart. The photos were taken in July 2023. The cathedral is a local-significance historical landmark.
Pavlo Shubart, the author of this year’s series, explained his motivation for taking part: “War is merciless to architectural heritage. It can happen that a photograph is not just the only memory left of an architectural landmark, but also a model for the restorers who will take on its rebuilding”.
A colour series of the cathedral’s damaged interior, by Oleksandr Voropaiev, was honoured in this category in the 2024 contest.
Second place went to a series of photos and images that document specific elements of damaged heritage sites.
“Traces of War on History: Chernihiv”
The jury awarded a work picturing a historical site with marks left by a Russian cluster munition on the territory of the Upper Castle of the Chernihiv Dytynets. The photographer is Serhii Kolotusha. The photos were taken on May 18, 2025. Serhii has taken part in the contest several times and won in different categories.
Chernihiv Val (Rampart; or Chernihiv Dytynets) is a national-significance archaeological landmark — the central fortified part of Chernihiv, dating from the 7th–13th centuries, on a high spur above the right bank of the Desna river.
“[We need] to keep this contest going, especially now, when, sadly, as a result of the war that Russia is waging against us, many heritage sites are being damaged and destroyed”, said Serhii Kolotusha, the photographer.
“Music in Danger: Dnipro”
Among photos of music-venue heritage sites damaged by Russian aggression, the jury recognised a series of images of damaged stained-glass windows at the Dnipro Organ and Chamber Music Hall. The photographer is Oleh Besedin. The photos were taken on 24 June 2025. Oleh’s work has been recognised in the contest several times before.
The Dnipro Organ and Chamber Music Hall is a concert venue housed in the building of St Nicholas Cathedral, a national-significance architectural and historical landmark built in 1913–1915. The Organ and Chamber Music Hall has occupied the building since 1980; its organ — custom-built by the German firm Sauer — has 30 registers and 2,074 pipes.
“Other Buildings as Targets: Zaporizhzhia”
Third place went to a series of photos of the Zaporizhzhia II railway station (formerly Oleksandrivsk station) in Zaporizhzhia, damaged by a Russian missile strike. The photographer is Fedir Kaiira. The photos were taken in June 2025.
The historical Zaporizhzhia II station building is a recently identified architectural and urban-planning landmark, built in 1904 to a design by engineer Borys Ripas.
The winning photos featured in this article and other works recognised in the 2025 Wiki Loves Monuments Ukraine contest can be viewed on Wikimedia Commons at this link.
“This year the organising team of Wiki Loves Monuments Ukraine team decided to continue organising this special category, dedicated to documenting how war destroys monuments, and they are also organising a few other special categories, dedicated to documenting cultural heritage of a few minorities of Ukraine — Bulgarian, German, Jewish, Polish heritage, and even added a new one, dedicated to Czech heritage, and we are very grateful to Wikimedia Wikimedia Česká republika for partnering with us on this. There is a strong feeling of urgency to document as much as possible, motivating volunteers to expand the project, despite our situation even worsening, the war destroys monuments, it destroys people, and it destroys knowledge”, commented Anton Protsiuk, Programs Coordinator at Wikimedia Ukraine.
“Just yesterday, as we have been preparing this for a publication, a Russian drone hit a building in downtown Kyiv, a monument of national significance, the National Academy of Sciences building. The 170-year old building just went up in flames, with at least two academicians confirmed dead, and there is a sad expectation for more casualties, as the strike was in the middle of a working day. Before this attack there were only 35 pictures of the monument on Wikimedia Commons, no interiors, and now the monument is so significantly damaged that it is unclear if it can be restored any time soon…”, shared Iryna Boiko, Communications manager at Wikimedia Ukraine. “Seeing history and lives so easily erased does give you a sense of urgency to do what you can to preserve monuments at least digitally”.
This post uses information from Ukrainian Wikipedia entries“Real School Building (Izium)”,“Government Building of Ukraine”,“Transfiguration Cathedral (Odesa)”,“Chernihiv Val” and “Dnipro Organ and Chamber Music Hall”.
Read also:
- War destroys monuments: the toll of Russian invasion of Ukraine in a Wiki Loves Monuments special category (2023)
- Wiki Loves Monuments… But war destroys them (2024)
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