How can we capture a city whose character is constantly changing? At Laichter House, editors from POMIZH, an independent media project based in Dnipro, will discuss what it means to publish a print cultural magazine in Ukraine during the Russian war. The discussion will focus on cities, memory, and the need to document the present at a time when it is still taking shape.

POMIZH is an independent media project about the Ukrainian city of Dnipro and the surrounding region, created by a small grassroots team working at the intersection of journalism, culture, memory, and local history. Since its founding in 2022, it has explored how people relate to their city, how local identities are formed and transformed, and how everyday experiences become part of a shared memory. The project publishes articles online, produces a podcast, and publishes a bilingual print magazine, with all texts translated into English.

POMIZH was founded by the nonprofit organization Kultura Medialna, which carries out projects in Dnipro in the fields of art and culture, community development, urban research, and civic engagement. Kultura Medialna is also a co-founder of the Dnipro Center for Contemporary Culture (DCCC).

The second issue of the magazine, which the guests will bring to Prague, explores the various facets of Dnipro and its surroundings, as well as how our perception of the city changes over time, influenced by distance, the possibility of loss, and the presence or absence of people who understand us.

The first issue, published in 2024 with a print run of 900 copies, is now completely sold out. It won the Grand Prix in the Best Book Design 2024 competition organized by Book Arsenal in Kyiv, took first place in the Utility Book category, and received a bronze award at the European Design Awards.

In an interview with host Darja Lukjanenko, an interdisciplinary artist originally from Dnipro who lives in Prague, POMIZH co-founders and editors Dinara Khalilova and Alina Stamenova discuss why personal and local stories are important for capturing the shared experience of war, what it takes to produce a magazine during wartime, and why independent publishing and grassroots cultural initiatives emerge even under exceptionally challenging conditions.

The discussion will also connect the Ukrainian experience to broader questions that are relevant to cultural communities in Prague and elsewhere: How do we document the places to which we belong? What happens to local identity in times of crisis and transformation? How does our conception of home change when it becomes a place of uncertainty, displacement, absence, or loss? And what role can a small independent publishing house play in preserving stories that are often overlooked by larger narratives?

The discussion will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience and an opportunity to browse and purchase the magazine.