Street art around the abandoned city of Pripyat
Pripyat City was abandoned on 27th April 1986, the day following the nuclear accident at the nearby Chornobyl Nuclear Power Station. Since then nature has taken over. Slowly art has appeared on the walls, the shadow-like figures and the wild animals of the zone being some of the more frequently seen.
Things have changed in Chornobyl since this was written. Hopefully, one-day peace will return and visiting this special region of Ukraine will be possible.
Street art in Pripyat City
Pripyat is a haunting city and the street art that has appeared over the years is equally haunting. Some tell the story of the disaster. A small boy peeking around a wall, another screaming in distress. Others depict the wild bears and deer that have returned to the area as it has become a wilderness.
Tucked around corners, in doorways and on some of the larger buildings the graffiti is one way that visitors can tell their own feelings about the Exclusion Zone and the disaster. The images are out of place but at the same time feel right in their presence in the zone.
Graffiti to find in Pripyat on a day trip
- The black figures around the Palace of Culture
- Bears and deer between Lenin Square and the Amusement Park
- Space hopper girl and young ‘Trump’ between the post office and supermarket
- The military murals at the Duga radar system
Photography notes
The graffiti in Pripyat is easy to find without needing to go off the main tourist trail. Look at the artwork in its surroundings as the context of the buildings and the art can add to the story within the photograph.
Some of the paint is peeling and the paintings are fading as time progresses. This can be overcome by increasing the contrast in the image or by embracing the decay in your photograph.
Some graffiti is now being vandalised and destroyed which means that some are gone forever but it is evolving and new pieces are appearing all the time.
