-- EDITOR'S NOTE: We have started a new Ukraine Live Blog as of September 2, 2017. Find it here.
-- Ukraine says it will introduce new border-crossing rules from next year, affecting citizens of “countries that pose risks for Ukraine.”
-- The Association Agreement strengthening ties between Ukraine and the European Union entered into force on September 1, marking an end to four years of political drama surrounding the accord.
-- The trial of Crimean journalist Mykola Semena will resume later this month after the first hearing in weeks produced little progress toward a resolution of the politically charged case.
*NOTE: Times are stated according to local time in Kyiv(GMT +3)
On October 13, Australian artist Guido van Helten completed a large-scale mural in Avdiyivka, an eastern Ukrainian town where fighting between Russia-backed separatists and government troops still takes place 2 1/2 years after the start of a conflict that has killed more than 9,600 people. RFE/RL's Amos Chapple was granted exclusive access to an art project that was greeted with confusion by some locals -- and delight by others.
The Frontline Artist
1/18Wearing a flak jacket and ballistic helmet, Guido van Helten nears completion of his portrait of a local woman.
2/18The day before, van Helten had visited a local school to photograph Marina Marchenko, whom he chose after seeing a photograph of the 73-year-old teacher. "I could just see the kindness in her eyes...I want my work to have a local identity."
3/18After choosing a building that faces the front lines, van Helten backs out after being told the separatists would be able to see the position. Finally, after a search for another suitable wall proves fruitless, he agrees to work at the building. It is the Australian's first time in a conflict area.
6/18Work begins on the portrait. Van Helten says he does not intend the work to be a political statement. "Who am I to make a statement about a complex situation like this?.... Honestly though, I reckon if I went to the other side I would see just the same thing, the same kids in the classrooms.... This isn't about good and evil."
7/18Damage from an artillery or tank round above where Van Helten works. The building has stood empty since 2014, after a Grad (Hail) rocket landed in one of the apartments, killing two civilians inside.
8/18Van Helten says he had long put off the project, an idea conceived by Kyiv art collective Art United Us, because he feels uncomfortable with "this daredevil thing in street art now where it's all about the biggest, the most dangerous or whatever."
9/18Van Helten using his cellphone as a guide while he paints. The artist says he eventually agreed after feeling "kind of down" while working on an assignment in Finland. "I just thought, as long as people don't see it [as a daredevil thing] then only good can come out of it."
10/18"These people have probably never seen anything like this.... If I can give them something to think about that isn't war -- even for a moment, then it's worth it."
11/18A woman looks up as the mural takes shape. The reactions were mostly positive -- one soldier told van Helten: "I love you!" -- but two locals wondered why the equipment wasn't being used for repairs to the wrecked apartments. One elderly woman said, "There's a hole in my roof, the rain is coming through, and you're here just painting? Boys, it's not right".
12/18Twenty-four shades of gray which are used for the mural. Van Helten says "there is this idea that art is this valuable thing and money has to be spent on it, but for projects like this I'm not charging anything, it's just my time." Geo Leros, from Art United Us, says that the paint, travel, and rental of the lift was paid for by private sponsors.
13/18Van Helten pauses after a heavy explosion nearby. On both days van Helten worked on the mural, the boom of mortars and rattle of machine-gun fire began in the late afternoon. Shortly after this picture was taken van Helten asked, "If [the separatists] were to like, break the line or something...we'd know about it, right?"
18/18The finished portrait. Van Helten's work has been a huge boon for some small towns. By the time he left Avdiyivka, locals were beginning to gather and photograph the artwork.
![Van Helten using his cellphone as a guide while he paints. The artist says he eventually agreed after feeling "kind of down" while working on an assignment in Finland. "I just thought, as long as people don't see it [as a daredevil thing] then only good can come out of it."](https://gdb.rferl.org/26e70403-ac07-4cde-a1a3-7fc5f4a7301e_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
![Van Helten pauses after a heavy explosion nearby. On both days van Helten worked on the mural, the boom of mortars and rattle of machine-gun fire began in the late afternoon. Shortly after this picture was taken van Helten asked, "If [the separatists] were to like, break the line or something...we'd know about it, right?"](https://gdb.rferl.org/6220fcd6-bec5-43b1-9400-ce699c35350f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
