Cross of heroes

Kabluka Light & Digital Sculptures developed the concept of the installation, the master plan for the location, the architectural design and implementation of this innovative and large-scale project. The Cross of Heroes memorial is a new approach to commemoration, a new place of power.

Based on the Cossack cross, a symbol of victory and protection, we manifested it in three directions, placing it both in the paving and through inversion in space. We also wanted it to be inscribed in a circle, so that a person could not only contemplate it from the outside, but also get INTO the middle of the cross from any four sides of the world.

Each of the visitors gets

- into the middle of the CROSS;

- into the middle of the LIGHT;

- into the middle of the SOUND;

It is a form based on optical and light effects.  These are mirrored edges that interact with their surroundings and reflect each other. Of course, we also paid a lot of attention to light. With light, we enhance the sacredness of the installation and create conditions for maximum immersion in the context.

Optical fibre light elements are integrated into the paving and the form itself. And the wavy metal surfaces are placed in such a way that in any season and weather they catch sunbeams with a certain symbolic meaning.

The light elements represent the souls of the heroes who sacrificed themselves to protect Ukraine, and all those who make efforts to dispel the darkness with their light.

They symbolise all those who, in dark times, carry their cross and light to others:

- Carries their cross and light to others;

- continues to fight in spite of everything;

- makes every effort to win;

- kept their faith and humanity.

Being inside the installation among thousands of lights, a person experiences an emotional symbolic experience of unity with the nation of which he or she is an integral part.

Entering from any of the four sides of the installation, a person finds himself in the centre of the cross, enveloped by the sounds of his native land. The audio accompaniment was created from sounds associated with different parts of Ukraine and allows you to feel the vibrations of our land: from the whispering noise of forests to the melodic sounds of Carpathian streams.

Around the Cross of Heroes, we have designed and manufactured special custom glass steles, where visitors can find not only brief information about the project, but also a QR code to get to the website dedicated to the memorial.

We invite you to visit https://www.crossofheroes.org/.

Here, we share the meaning and philosophy of this landmark project, ideas and technical solutions, as well as photos and videos.

After many creative brainstorming sessions with the Kabluka Light & Digital Sculptures team, experiments in the office with the form and materials, and the production of 3D models, the Cross of Heroes memorial turned out to be very complex from both a technical and psychological point of view.

We set out to create a deeper meaningful emotional ritual: to immerse a person as if inside a cross, in the middle of hundreds of lights, but in addition to perceiving the form, to enhance immersive immersion with audio accompaniment. In "Cross of Heroes", sounds become another catalyst for feelings and experiences, another key element of the composition. My team and I spent a lot of time on the audio part of the concept, thinking about what sounds would be appropriate here, because it was primarily a memorial sculpture. 

Ukrainians have always been connected to their native land, which they feel and cherish. And we wanted to complement the memorial with sounds that would be close to every Ukrainian, that would gently wrap around and comfort them like the voice of your mother singing you a lullaby, soothing you in her arms, and filling you with her love. 

We have combined the chants of the steppes of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the whisper of the Carpathian wind, the roar of the Crimean mountains, the sound of the sea in Mariupol, Odesa and Crimea, etc. into a single track. 

By placing the speakers specifically in the prisms, we directed the sound inside the sculpture so that it was almost inaudible from the outside. Only when you go inside the Cross can you hear them. In this way  we created a deeper connection between the art and the viewer, a more personal and holistic experience of interaction.

In our lab, we created several 3D models at the design stage of the memorial. One of them was printed on a 3D printer, and the other was closer to the real thing - glass prisms with splashes of light on them and on the floor to study the perception of the sculpture in more depth.