In January, we posted about the recent laser scan digitalization of three synagogues in the Bukovina region of western Ukraine that are noted for their elaborate interior decoration: the Beit Tfilah Benjamin Synagogue in Chernivtsi, currently in use by the local congregation; the abandoned New Great Synagogue in Novoselitza; and the Groise Shil (Great Synagogue) in Chernivtsi, now used as a carpentry shop.
The scans, which allow the user to zoom in on details and virtually tour the spaces, are aimed at documenting, studying and digitally preserving these paintings and were carried out by Skeiron, an organization founded in 2016 whose aim is the “Preservation and promotion of Ukraine’s cultural heritage through digital technologies and immersive research.”
From November 20 to April 20, an exhibition in Köln, Germany will feature the scans, digitization, photography, and research regarding the murals that were carried out in that project.
Called Gemalte Gebete (Painted Prayers): Threatened Murals in Synagogues of Ukrainian Bukovina, it is based on the longstanding art historical research of Dr. Eugeny Kotlyar and on the new photographic and digital 3D documentation. It presents the murals and also addresses the threat and destruction of cultural assets by the ongoing war. It also documents German-Ukrainian cooperation in the preservation of Jewish cultural heritage in Ukraine.
The exhibition, organizers say
The exhibition has a pronounced multimedia character: the photographs are supplemented by historical visual material, reconstruction drawings and explanatory texts, which, among other things, explain the symbolism of the synagogue wall paintings and present the important personalities of Jewish culture of the Bukovina. A special highlight is the 3D recording of the synagogue in Novoselitza, which was created as part of a documentation project – in cooperation with the Architecture Institute of the Mainz University of Applied Sciences and the Ukrainian company Skeiron. In addition, recordings are shown that document the studies and the artistic appropriation of the wall paintings by students of the State Academy of Design and Art Kharkiv.
The exhibition provides a holistic view of the Eastern European tradition of synagogue wall painting and its regional peculiarities. An in-depth analysis of iconography, semantics and artistic design gives visitors access to the deep spiritual content and social value of this cultural heritage of Eastern European Judaism – a heritage that was largely destroyed by the Holocaust and the authoritarian post-war regimes and is once again endangered in the course of Russia’s current war of aggression against Ukraine.
The exhibition will run until April 20, at the University and City Library, Universitätsstraße 33, 50931 Cologne.
The opening event — at 6 p.m. on November 20 — includes a round table discussion by Dr. Matthias Lehmann (Martin-Buber Institute for Jewish Studies University of Cologne), Prof. Eugeny Kotlyar (Chair of Monumental Painting of the State Academy of Design and Art in Kharkiv), and Mykola Kurschnir (Museum of the History and Culture of the Bukovinian Jews in Czernowitz).
The exhibit was curated by Prof. Dr. Aleksandra Lipińska, of the Art History Institute, University of Cologne, with collaboration from:
- Prof. Dr. Stephan Hoppe, Institute for Art History, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich
- Prof. Eugeny Kotlyar, Chair of Monumental Painting of the State Academy of Design and Art, Kharkiv
- Mykola Kuzhnir, Museum of the History and Culture of the Bukovinian Jews in Czernowitz
- Prof. Dr. Jan Lutteroth, Institute of Architecture of the University of Mainz and Herder Institute for Historical East Central European Research Marburg
- Dr. Andreas Pfützner, Martin Buber Institute for Jewish Studies, University of Cologne
A lecture series accompanying the exhibit includes:
- 24.11.2025 | 18:00
Prof. Eugeny Kotlyar (Head of the Chair of Monumental Painting of the State Academy of Design and Art in Kharkiv)
Murals in synagogues of the Ukrainian Bukovina
Venue: Kunsthistorisches Institut, University of Cologne, An St. Laurentius 8, 50931 Cologne
Please register at: [email protected] -
Painting in former Grosse Shul in Chenivtsi showing people praying at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Photo: Christian Herrmann 15.12.2025
Dr. Andreas Pfützner (Martin-Buber-Institute for Jewish Studies, University of Cologne)
Anti-Semitism in the Bukovina of the Interwar Period: The Assassination of David Fallik
Lecture venue and time will be announced shortly. - 12.01.2026
Prof. Dr. Jana Osterkamp (Bukowina Institute, English History of Germany with Eastern Europe, University of Augsburg)
More information on this date will follow. - 19.01.2026
Prof. Andrei Corbea-Hoișie (Professorship for German Literature, University of Iasi, Romania)
More information on this date will follow.
The exhibit is organized and/or sponsored by:
- Kunsthistorisches Institut, University of Cologne
- Martin Buber Institute for Jewish Studies, University of Cologne
- Institute of Art History, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich
- Network Cultural Property Protection Ukraine
Click here to see full details of the exhibit and events
Click here to see out January post about the digitization project, with links to the 3D laser scans