Symbolism and Formal Characteristics of Ornament in the Artistic Culture of Ukrainian Modernism

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the formal and symbolic features of ornament in the artistic culture of Ukrainian Modernism, to identify the patterns of its formation and functioning as a sign system, and to clarify the role of ornament as a carrier of cultural meanings within the structure of fine art of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The research methodology is based on a combination of contemporary art-historical approaches to the analysis of ornament as an artistic phenomenon. The study employs formal-stylistic, semiotic, and iconological approaches, which allow the ornament to be examined in the unity of its formal and symbolic characteristics. This ensures a comprehensive understanding of ornament as a form of visual thinking in Ukrainian Modernism. The novelty of the research lies in the comprehensive consideration of ornament in Ukrainian Modernism as a synthetic phenomenon in which form and symbolism exist in inseparable unity, as well as in identifying the specificity of its functioning as a means of representing national cultural distinctiveness. Conclusions. Ornament in the artistic culture of Ukrainian Modernism is a complex synthetic phenomenon in which formal and symbolic elements form an integrated system of visual thinking. It functions not as a secondary decorative element, but as a key structure-forming component of the artistic language of Modernism. Interpreted through formal-stylistic, semiotic, and iconological approaches, ornament can be understood as a multi-layered sign system capable of conveying both aesthetic and worldview meanings. Its stylistics developed through the interaction of three main sources – folk decorative art, the Byzantine and Old Rus’ tradition, and Western European Modernism-whose synthesis ensured both national specificity and stylistic coherence. The formal organisation of ornament is based on line, rhythm, compositional variability, and the interplay of symmetry and asymmetry, creating a dynamic visual structure. Its symbolic dimension is shaped by archetypal and natural motifs that, transformed into stylised images, function as carriers of cultural memory. Thus, ornament serves both as a means of representing cultural tradition and as a tool for shaping a new visual language, which integrates national and European artistic tendencies.