The airstrike on the Mariupol Theatre on March 16, 2022, was a shocking event during the early weeks of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. At the time, the building sheltered thousands of Mariupol residents during the city's siege. The word “CHILDREN” was written in large letters on the ground, signalling that the theatre was not a military target. Despite this, Russian forces carried out an airstrike on it.
On March 28, 2022, Russian troops seized the city centre. Since then, the occupying authorities have been erasing and manipulating the evidence of the crime. The ruins of the theatre became a backdrop for propaganda. On December 22, 2022, most of the remaining structure was demolished.
The Centre for Spatial Technologies (CST) is researching the history of the theatre — its transformation into a shelter during the full-scale war, the Russian attack, and the destruction of its memory. The team has gathered and analysed thousands of photographs, videos, and social media posts and recorded over 100 hours of conversations with witnesses. Close collaboration with witnesses to reconstruct their memories into a 3D model transforms this research into a commemorative practice.
Content warning: depiction of war
The Centre for Spatial Technologies (CST) is a Ukrainian multidisciplinary research organisation.
By combining architecture, computer science, and the humanities, CST explores cities' past, present, and future.
