February 24, 2022 — the invasion begins. Ukrainian museums vanish from Google Maps, and art goes underground. As cultural centres in cities like Kharkiv and Kyiv come under threat, volunteers rise to protect Ukraine’s heritage from annihilation. Without official directives, this network took on daring missions to safeguard both state and private collections – even at the risk of their own lives. War on Art is not only a film about preserving cultural identity, but also a portrait of Ukraine’s contemporary art scene and a testament to art’s power to be more than a passive witness to history.
