The volunteer team approached the expeditions in the Kharkiv region thoroughly, as a part of the region was still in the active phase of the war, and the liberated lands had been under occupation for quite a long time. Planning routes had to be done after consultations with the military, as there were still many uncleared minefields in the de-occupied territories. Traveling there independently without the military and a special volunteer pass was extremely dangerous, so the part of the Kharkiv region turned out to be closed for our research. The list of villages was compiled after consultations with historian Maksym Rosenfeld, who is well-versed in the history of Slobozhanshchyna.

During some of the journeys, volunteers lived in a private house and slept in a bomb shelter in the basement to avoid waking up from air alarms and to stay as focused as possible. Unlike other researched regions, there was constant tension and predictable caution from the locals in Kharkiv Oblast. Also, volunteers hardly encountered elderly people here, who usually shared memories of their own homes. In total, volunteer groups managed to explore 15 villages in the region.

A characteristic feature of the Kharkiv region is its heterogeneity. The historical development of the western, eastern, northern, and southern parts influenced the formation of distinctive and characteristic architecture within the region.

Buildings in the Kharkiv region were mostly constructed with brick. This is due to the rich deposits of red clay and the development of the sugar industry. People here had the resources to build quality and sturdy houses. History also played its role – this multifaceted region was systematically destroyed throughout the 20th century. Wooden houses are found in the northern part of the region, where there are forests. Although there are significantly fewer of them, we preserved them in the constructor so as not to interrupt this tradition..

The characteristic color palette of the Kharkiv region is a combination of shades of green and blue. Red brick is often adorned with decorative inserts of colored painted bricks – most often white. In general, the decor of local buildings is characterized by simple geometric forms, including diamonds.