ART SCIENCE IN UKRAINE DURING THE PERIOD OF INDEPENDENCE (1991–2010): ANALYSIS OF DISSERTATION WORKS (VISUAL ARTS)
Authors: Matolich Iryna 
Published: May 2023

The thesis work is one of the results of scientific activities. The topics of thesis works demonstrate the current problems in the scientific and practical activities of Ukrainian art experts the most vividly. In the course of the research, the bibliometric and bibliographic analyses of scientific works in the field of “art history”, defended in Ukraine and abroad, first of all those, that directly relate to the Ukrainian culture, were performed. To determine the trends of art history search and problematic issues of scientific studies, theses for the scholastic degree of doctor and candidate of sciences in the art studies specialties (visual arts), 17.00.05, 17.00.06 and 17.00.01, 26.00.01, which were defended within 1991–2010, were analysed. The statistical results regarding the dynamics, distribution of researches according to the specialties and objects of research are given. This allows identifying groups of the problematic and promising trends of scientific inquiries and the level of their solution. After analysing the distribution of thesis works in the specialties, certain disproportions were detected. The greatest number of works is defended in the specialty “Fine Arts”, in the second place is “Decorative and Applied Arts”, in the last place is “Theory and History of Culture”. Of all the specialties, the doctoral theses were defended much less – in 5 times (specialty “Theory and History of Culture”) and in 9 times (specialty “Fine Arts”) than the candidates’ theses. The largest scientific centres, where art experts of Ukraine gather, are Lviv which accounts for 48.70% of all defended theses, most of which are in the specialty 17.00.06 – “Decorative and Applied Arts”, as well as Kyiv (29.32%), Kharkiv (15.18%), Ivano-Frankivsk (4.19%) and Simferopol (0.52%). The greatest number of defences in Ukraine from 1991 to 2010 took place in Lviv – 93 theses, whereas in Kyiv – 56 (all three specialties), Kharkiv – 29, Ivano-Frankivsk – 8, Simferopol – 1 thesis. Thus, the structural-dynamic classification of the thesis works, which were defended in Ukraine within 1991–2010 for the scholastic degrees of candidate and doctor of the art history (visual arts), showed a certain fragmentary nature in this area. The bibliometric analysis of scientific studies in the art history specialties gives grounds to assert that the indicated problem is widely represented and was considered by scientists according to the overwhelming majority of the specialty 17.00.05 “Fine Arts”. The consideration of geography of scientific publications of the period of 199–2010 for the defence of art history theses (visual arts) provides an opportunity to highlight the biggest centres of Ukraine. These are Lviv, Kyiv, Kharkiv and Ivano-Frankivsk. So, the analysis of dynamics of the researches conducted in Ukraine points to the periodic increase in the number of defended theses. However, there are many gaps in the topics of scientific works. Mostly, these are theses in the contemporary art and somewhat less than the “new” period and extremely few of the periods of the Middle Ages and the old time (from one to three works). In particular, it was revealed that in the Ukrainian art history of the period under study there were no thesis works where the sculpture would be studied. Also, the artistic processing of bone and horn still remains unresearched.