In 2020 for the first time Kherson became the site of the largest festival of contemporary art in Ukraine – Gogolfest. This international multidisciplinary festival presented a number of programs: theatre, music, education, visual, performance.  All programs intersect each other; this creative freedom and interaction at the junction of disciplines forces unique culture products that have no analogues in Ukraine.  The theme of the festival was DREAM in both meanings of this word. The organizers of the festival decided to remind the people of Kherson about advantages of dreams for the personality and the city, and by this way wake up Kherson and its citizens from sleep.

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Site-specific projects were created especially for Kherson in the most charismatic parts of the city.  The former vent shop next to Urban CAD was chosen for the visual program. On this location, the Center for Cultural Development "Totem" and the curator of the visual program Olena Afanasieva constructed total installation "Dreams of Hecate", which immersed the audience into the ancient history of southern Ukraine.  We mentioned myths and legends (not only ancient but modern also), and the vent shop turned into the forest of Gileya, which once housed the sanctuary of the ancient Greek goddess Hecate (she was goddess of dreams, moonlight, otherworldly illusions). During curatorial tours, together with the visitors we went through Hecate's nightmares to thoughts of contemporary artists about dreams and reality.

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The installation was the result of creative laboratory organised by CCD “Totem”. More than 30 artists from Kherson, Odessa and Kyiv joined us. According to visitors, the visual program in Kherson has become one of the best in the history of travels of the Gogolfest festival to the regions of Ukraine.

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