Phone: (044) 278 3454; 278 2763;
e-mail:etnolog@etnolog.org.ua;
http://www.etnolog.org.ua

M. Rylsky Institute of Art Studies, Folklore and Ethnology is a leading multi-faceted research institution covering main folk and art disciplines. The research is done by 7 departments, those of: fine arts, theatre studies, cinema studies, culture studies and ethno-art studies, professional and folk art of foreign countries, folklore and ‘Ukrainian ethnology centre’.

Fundamental research of the Institute is carried out in the following areas:

- historical and ethnographical studies of culture and ethnic history of the Ukrainian people, ethnic minorities of Ukraine in the context of present-day cultural processes;

- topical theoretical issues of professional-art history and folklore;

- ethnic culture and art of foreign countries; history and tendencies of their present-day development;

- present-day folk studies: history, theory, innovative tendencies.

The main task of the Institute is publishing fundamental scholarly writings, proceedings, academic «histories» (those of music, theatre, cinema, fine arts), preparing encyclopedias. M. Rylsky Institute is completing the following academic works of nation-wide importance: «Encyclopedia of Ethnography», «Ukrainian Dumas» (in 5 volumes), a multi-volume series «Oral Folklore», «The History of Ukrainian Ethnography» (in 3 volumes), a multi-volume corpus «Ethnographic Heritage» (in 10 volumes), «Ukrainian Music Encyclopaedia» (in 3 volumes), «Dictionary of Painters of Ukraine», «Ukrainian Encyclopaedic Dictionary» (in 3 volumes), «History of Ukrainian Theatre» (in 3 volumes), «History of Ukrainian Fine Arts» (in 3 volumes), «Ethnic and Ethno-Cultural History of Ukraine» (in 3 volumes) etc.

M. Rylsky Institute plays the leading role in preservation and proper use of the memorials of non-material cultural heritage. Of great significance for forming the basis of folk and art studies is the unique, in terms of its historical and cultural importance, archival fund of folk and ethnographic manuscripts and sound records containing unique products of national creative activities – ‘National archival manuscript stock’ of the Institute. The Institute has compiled an electronic database of expedition materials in ethnography of Ukrainians and national minorities. It exists as a fundamental digital basis for preserving academic and information resources for ethnographic source studies and presentation of the general pattern of Ukrainian culture.

M. Rylsky Institute is a centre of Slavic studies in Ukraine, possessing a valuable human potential, it maintains close academic contacts with foreign centers, implements international projects jointly with them, in particular, that on studying border-line regions.

The Academic Council of the Institute supervises the research activities of the NAS State Museum of Folk Architecture and Life, and in this connection plans research towards detecting, preserving and studying the ethno-cultural heritage of Ukrainians.

In the near future, fundamental research in the area of art studies will be aimed at producing multivolume histories of respective arts, reference and encyclopaedic editions, publishing works on ethnographic heritage and professional arts on digital media.