Not Just Creativity, but Support as Well: How Zaporizhzhia’s Oplich Hub Helps People Cope with Stress
For more than three years, the Oplich Hub community centre in Zaporizhzhia has been providing a welcoming space where local residents, visitors to the city, and internally displaced people can access free psychological support through creative activities, social interaction, and a wide range of community initiatives.One of the centre’s most popular activities continues to be its art therapy workshops. According to psychologist and art therapist Nataliia Popova, for most participants the primary goal is not to learn how to paint, but to find inner peace.“A painting is a reason to come together. From my observations, people come not so much for the experience or to learn painting techniques. People come here for a certain state of mind,” says Nataliia POPOVA.For many participants, these creative activities have provided a chance to take their minds off the ongoing stress of living through war, even if only for a short time. “There’s still a bit of tension, but I hope that these sessions