Well, yes, Ukraine sold out to Russia over extending the lease on its Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol. But, then again, did they have a choice? At least, they had the spirit enough to indulge in a wicked, no-holds barred brawl in Parliament. And these are the men that most young Ukrainian girls cite as the most desirable sugar daddies? Think again, young grrrrllls!
April 11, 2010
By Vijai
It’s Malcolm Gladwellian tipping-point-time in Ukraine’s capital, Kiev, which is on the cusp of a street fashion revolution. The T-shirt & hoodie crowd, the emo & punk kids, the hip indie chicks and the stylish mods are gaining in numbers with each spring, and plotting to topple the Versace-wearing status quo. Hipsters are setting up their own T-shirt labels like Frequency, whose iconic T-shirts and sleeveless hoodies variously read
‘Jesus Also Loves Gangsters’ or ‘FFFFFUUU’; little clothing & record stores are popping up in obscure courtyards in the city’s historic center; while new bars like Korol I Kapusta (King & Cabbages), Palatka No. 6, Backstreet and others funnel the energies of this new generation.
I walked around Kiev’s center this Friday, facehunting for the Bread&Butter crowd. They’re here, they’re out in force, and, hey, you wanna invite them back to your flat, blast the Cure on the stereo, and stop the world and melt with them.
June 11, 2009
Photographs by Vijai
Model: Maria Zhakarova
Kiev’s biweekly Top 10 listings magazine is actually quite a cool zine: A well-designed, edgy contrast to the mainstream Time Out and Afisha. Unlike other local listings mags, Top 10 is more aspirational, choosing often to cover the Venice Biennale or Ibiza than events happening closer to home, despite the fact that a vast majority of Kievans have never ventured beyond Turkey and Egypt. But the magazine, like a transplanted New Yorker for an emerging Kievan elite, sets it sights high and thus separates itself from its competitors, which choose instead to shine shit and hype the local scene instead. So far so good. Somewhat edgy fashion shoots and trend mag design have endeared the publication to us during our stay in Kiev.
However, the praise only makes sense within a local context. Compare Top 10 to the doyens of the trendy listings scene in Europe – Portugal’s Diff or Athen’s Ozon – and it comes across as wanna-be, and desperately unironic. It’s ‘I Love Kiev’ campaign is so so 80s, and except for the heart on the T-shirt being slighty bloodied, it might as well be a children’s hospital in Oregon feeling good about itself. And when the magazine writes about the West, its coverage verges on adulation. Where’s the Beasty vibe, the ‘Eat the West’ attitude that demonstrates local pride.
So, just to show them we’re onto their game, we tore up a recent copy of Top 10. Ok, we admit, we were also bored, not much else going on now that it’s 33 degrees outside. What better thing to do than sip champange in a cool studio and have fun being bad.
