The relevance of the research topic is due to the need for a contextual analysis of the symbolic language of artistic works, based on culturological, art history methods and other disciplines — history, philosophy, psychology, which expand the field of interpretation of symbols in the paintings of Kyiv artists at the beginning of the XXI century.
The scientific task of the dissertation is to develop the typology of the symbol in the painting of Kyiv artists of the early XXI century, the characteristics of its context and artistic and stylistic features; in the analysis of the visual lexicon; assessment of the role of archaic symbols and their modification in the modern work of artists; interpretations of Christian symbols in the works of artists; manifestations of cross-cultural trends in the expression of the essence and form of the symbol in the painting of artists; manifestations of ethnic features in the content and form of the symbol as an identity marker; clarifying the original meaning of the concept of “symbol” in the context of visualization of existence and cultural memory.
It was determined that the issue of the artistic symbol was considered in the scientific works of domestic and foreign scientists, however, despite the existing scientific research, the degree of development of this topic in Ukrainian art history remains insufficient and requires a comprehensive study of it to solve the tasks.
The topic is also actualized by the contradictions between traditional and new interpretations of the artistic symbol in the painting of modern Kyiv artists. This is due to the transformation processes of the transition from the Soviet to the modern research methodology, which are reflected in the analysis of works of painting, art and culture in general.
The dissertation defines the role of historical memory in the context of the formation of cultural symbols, which are reproduced around such pillars as durability, awareness of the past, stability, constancy, originality, vitality, continuity, self-awareness, self-identification, etc.
The typology of the symbol in the painting of Kyiv artists of the beginning of the XXI century is proposed. The analysis of paintings revealed a new connotation of archaic, Christian and cross-cultural symbols in Ukrainian fine art.
In the course of the study, a new look at symbols with a sacred basis, through which the latest works transfer spirituality into the XXI century, was proposed. As part of this issue, the dialogue of Kyiv artists with K. Malevich, the famous avant-garde artist of Ukrainian origin, the forerunner of the icon of the new century, is defined.
The artistic and stylistic features of the symbol in the painting of Kyiv artists of the early XXI century are characterized. The factors affecting the intensity, general meaning, and interpretation of the iconography of the symbol, which determine the visibility of the work in the modern context, are determined.
The national factors of cross-cultural interaction, which are one of the key factors in the formation of modern topical art in the creativity of Ukrainian artists, are determined.
Ethnic features in the content and form of the symbol are singled out, which form the national aspect in the visualization of the symbol by Ukrainian artists, which include ornament (Petrykivka painting, embroidered clothes, painted Ukrainian houses, towels, carpets, etc.), Trypillya culture, icon painting, Boychukism style, heraldry, appeal to archetypes, national decorative and applied art, folk art, mythology, mystical and transcendent (rituals and legends).
The emergence of a new iconography and the meaning of the "hero" symbol for the Ukrainian people are substantiated. The symbol that was modified, acquiring a modern expressiveness and a new Ukrainian national symbolism — “Hero of the Heavenly Hundred”, “Maidan”, “woman-warrior”, “warrior-cyborg”, “soil on Hrushevsky” and others.
The concept of an artistic symbol as an expression of creative intentions is clarified on the example of the painting of Kyiv artists of the early XXI century; the specifics and character of individual creative visionary practices that contribute to nation-building processes.
A complex interdisciplinary approach to the study and theoretical understanding of the artistic symbol contributed to the solution of the scientific task of the dissertation, the application of contextual and conceptual approaches in the field of art history to the analysis of the artistic symbol in painting as a form of identification in modern art, made it possible to trace the integration of universal symbols into the creative practices of modern Kyiv painters in in terms of multiculturalism and interethnic diversity, due to the peculiarities of individual creative intentions.
