On 13 February 2026, the opening of the architectural project exhibition ‘Encounters with Space’ took place in the lobby of the O.M. Makarov National Center for Aerospace Education of Youth. The exhibition is a joint initiative of the center and the Ukrainian State University of Science and Technologies, in particular the SEI ‘Prydniprovska State Academy of Civil Engineering and Architecture’.
The exhibition became not only a presentation of student works but also a symbolic event, a space for reflecting on the future, where architecture combines with space themes, technology, and philosophy. In the lobby, where excursions into the world of rocket and space engineering starts, young architects presented their own vision of the interaction between humanity, space, and the Universe.
The project was implemented in the framework of the partnership between USUST and the National Center and is aimed at supporting professionally oriented education. Second-year students of the Arch-24-4p group, majoring in Architecture and Urban planning, took part in the initiative. During a two-week architectural design practice, they created conceptual installation sketches for the main entrance area and the center’s large lobby – a symbolic ‘gateway to the Universe’.
The projects were inspired by a guided tour of the educational and exhibition complex, conducted by astronomy lecturer and specialist of the National Center, Liudmyla Marchenko. The students’ work was supervised by Nataliia Zakharchuk, assistant lecturer at the department of Fundamentals of Architecture, Synthesis of Arts and Cultural Heritage. The projects received professional evaluation from Hanna Slavinska, senior lecturer of the department, Ivan Revskyi, head of the department, and Iryna Shvets, deputy dean of the faculty of Architecture. On behalf of the National Center, participants and guests were welcomed by the head of the educational and methodological department.
