Fortress gallery «Bastion»

The Bastion Fortress Gallery has long been a favourite place for many residents of Ivano-Frankivsk to relax and enjoy shopping. Visitors from other cities and even countries often come here. The gallery opened in 2012, and its project was developed by famous architects. In their work, they emphasised the great historical significance of the unique monument that is part of the gallery, namely the remains of the ancient city fortress. The Bastion Fortress Gallery has shops selling handmade souvenirs, clothing and accessories, as well as handicrafts and handmade toys and souvenirs. You can also see a variety of tourist attractions that are of interest to both residents and visitors of Ivano-Frankivsk.

Stanislaviv’s coat of arms

The gallery’s guests are eager to take pictures against the wall with the ancient city coat of arms, and presentations and creative meetings are often held here. However, not everyone knows how old its history is. In 1663, Polish King Jan Kazimierz issued a privilege confirming the granting of Magdeburg rights to Stanislaviv and allowing the use of the city coat of arms. This coat of arms has changed many times, when it comes to certain details of its image. However, its original appearance was exactly like this: a fortress gate with three towers can be seen on a red field. The silver cross of Pyliav is placed on a blue background inside the gate, and the whole composition is located on a green hill. 

 We can see the image of the city coat of arms on the ancient city seals. It is believed that the oldest seal of the city of Stanislaviv dates back to 1670. It had a Latin inscription: “Sigillum civitatas Stanislavoviensi” (seal of the city of Stanislaviv). In the seventeenth century, such seals were used to approve various documents in the city magistrate.

A model of the city hall

Since 2014, the Bastion Fortress Gallery has been displaying a model of the second city hall, built in 1695. It was cruciform in plan, had nine floors and a tower with a dome. On the fifth floor level, there was a clock with four dials, and on the second and third floors, the magistrate and court held meetings. The ground floor was rented to merchants who opened shops there. The basement was used as a prison, where criminals and opryshky were kept. The town hall was badly damaged during the Marmalade fire of 1868, and only a burnt skeleton remained. The model was made by sculptors Dmytro and Taras Pylyponiuk from the Bohorodchany district and became the first in the Miniature City project initiated by Oleh Zaritskyi.

Outlines of the Stanislaviv Fortress

On the square of the Bastion Fortress Gallery, coloured paving stones outline the outlines of the city fortress dating back to the 1680s. The first version of the Stanislaviv Fortress was hexagonal and embodied the idea of a star city. This system was developed by the Italian architect Vincenzo Scamozzi and was considered the most progressive in fortification at the time. The principles of this system were used in his project by the “father” of the Stanislaviv Fortress, architect François Corassini. By order of Andriy Potocki, the fortress was rebuilt in 1679-1682, with the construction of a magnate’s residence, which was protected by two new bastions. The construction of the castle and the development of the fortress was carried out by another architect, the Frenchman Charles Benoit. The illuminated outlines of the city fortress can also be seen at the stand located inside the gallery. 

Windows overlooking the casemates

Visiting the Milk&Pink cafe, gallery guests have the opportunity not only to drink delicious coffee and enjoy a delicious dessert, but also to see the remains of the fortress casemates. 

These brick shelters were located inside the fortress along the inner walls and were used as storage for ammunition and various supplies. They were covered with a thick layer of earth from above. It is interesting that back then, bricks were made by hand, smoothed on top with fingers, which is why they were called “palchatka”. On the top of such bricks, there are always several fingerprints or furrows. The craftsman would fill the wooden mould with clay, then run his fingers over the top and clean off all the excess. Different traces were left each time, so it is impossible to come across two identical bricks from the same time.

Revealing the authentic masonry

On both sides of the entrance from Huzara Street, we can see two “windows” in the brick facing the walls. The architects call them “openings of authentic masonry”. They are intended to let everyone know what the ancient masonry looked like. The walls of the fortress were built of white, roughly hewn limestone. The history of building from this stone goes back more than a millennium, for example, the Egyptian pyramids were built from limestone blocks. A significant part of medieval castles in Europe also consisted of limestone, as it was easy to extract and process. Even back then, this building material was considered to be good for health, as it “breathes”, and therefore buildings are free from mould and excessive humidity. It is believed that the stone walls of the fortress were first bricked in the 1690s.

Cannonball

To the right of the entrance to the gallery from Huzara Street, there is another interesting exhibit – an ancient cannonball. It was found and presented to the gallery by local historian Ivan Bondarev. The cannonball is mounted on a metal bracket, and underneath it is a plate with the symbols “MDCLXXVI”, i.e. “1676” in Roman numerals. There is an assumption that this small souvenir dates back to the “first baptism” of the Stanislaviv Fortress in 1676, when it was besieged by Turkish troops led by Ibrahim Pasha, nicknamed Shaitan. A Turkish army of thousands spent several weeks near Stanislaviv, but failed to capture the city. The disappointed Turks moved north, burning Halych on their way. Interestingly, the weight of a cannonball was used to determine the calibre of a cannon in those days. The weight was calculated in pounds, and the Polish pound was 405 grams. Guns of 12 and 8 pounds were considered large calibre, but smaller ones were also used – three or even one and a half pounds. 

Forged sculptures

In 2003, Ivano-Frankivsk hosted the first Festival of Blacksmiths, which was held on the occasion of the City Day. It was then that the tradition of “creating a masterpiece” was born – a collective effort by all the festival participants. Back then, local blacksmiths made four legs for the table, and the guests made the nails that held the table top together. The result was called the Blacksmith’s Friendship Table. Now this table can be seen in the Bastion Fortress Gallery. In general, there are many works by artistic blacksmiths on display here, including the sculptures Flamingo, Camera, Flowers, Weathervane, and others.

Art exhibitions

The Bastion Fortress Gallery also hosts art exhibitions by artists from Ivano-Frankivsk and all over Ukraine. These exhibitions are very diverse, and their main goal is to evoke a reaction in the viewer and not leave him or her indifferent. In different periods, exhibitions of classical painting and unusual artworks, such as steampunk paintings, have been held here.