Ukrainian label PODYH is turning Kyiv’s modernist masterpieces into garments

A Ukrainian fashion brand is immortalising Kyiv’s modernist architecture in sophisticated garments.

PODYH draws inspiration from the city’s Soviet-era modernist icons, built between 1960 and 1980, many of which have been left to decay or risk demolition. Inspired by the architecture’s daring shapes, PODYH’s monochrome designs are austere, yet exquisitely elegant.

A round leather handbag echoes the UFO-like shape of the city’s Institute of Information, a knitted backpack imitates the cylindrical shape of Salyut Hotel, while the black leather dresses and skirts are modelled on the monolithic Vernadsky Library.

“As an architect by education, I am not indifferent to the state of my hometown. In Kyiv, and Ukraine as a whole, the architectural monuments of Soviet modernism are slowly being erased. Most of the objects are in critical condition, others are ruthlessly destroyed,” Daria Plaksyuk, who founded the brand in 2021, told The Calvert Journal. “My goal is to show their beauty and value impartially, without any reference to the era.”