Berlin, 26 June 2025 — The Only Material, an exhibition exploring the work and personal journeys of Ukrainian journalists during the ongoing full-scale war launched by Russia against Ukraine, opened at the Museum for Communication in Berlin. Organised by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) through its Voices of Ukraine programme — part of the Hannah Arendt Initiative and supported by the German Federal Foreign Office — the exhibition invites visitors to see beyond the headlines and into the lived experiences of journalists reporting under fire.
Bringing together first-person testimonies and photography, The Only Material sheds light on how Ukrainian journalists adapt, resist, and endure amid the pressures of full-scale war. It reflects on how their original motivations to report on ecology, gender, justice, or civic life have been profoundly reshaped by the Russian invasion and the demands of frontline reporting.
While the broader project features over thirty testimonies, the exhibition highlights the stories of five Ukrainian journalists: Viktoriia Yermolaieva, Andriy Kramchenkov, Oleksandr Kachura, Anna Murlykina, and Polina Vernyhor. Their deeply personal accounts offer rare insight into the human dimension of journalism in wartime — voices of those who never intended to become war reporters, yet now stand as witnesses to history. The full collection of stories, along with additional context and background, is available at theonlymaterial.com.
The exhibition opened with a special evening hosted at the Museum for Communication, attended by representatives from the political, media, cultural, and civil society sectors. Two of the featured journalists, Polina Vernyhor and Anna Murlykina, travelled from Kyiv to join the event and reflect on their work and lived experience during wartime. The opening programme also included speeches by Dietrich Wolf Fenner, Head of Exhibitions, Education and Communication at the Museum for Communication, and Andreas Lamm, Managing Director of ECPMF. The evening concluded with a performance by Ukrainian singer Hanna Hryniva, whose interpretations of Ukrainian folk songs offered a moment of emotional resonance and cultural reflection.
The exhibition is currently on view at the Museum for Communication, located at Leipziger Str. 16, 10117 Berlin, and has been extended until 4 August 2025 due to high interest. Designed as a travelling exhibition, The Only Material will continue its journey across Europe in the coming months.
Institutions, media organisations, and cultural platforms interested in hosting the exhibition are warmly invited to get in touch with the coordination team. For inquiries and hosting requests, please contact Olha Syrotiuk, Voices of Ukraine Programme Coordinator, olha.syrotiuk@ecpmf.eu.
