DATELINE NEW YORK: More great events to anticipate (10/14/01)

DATELINE NEW YORK: More great events to anticipate

by Helen Smindak

The 2001-2002 cultural season is filled with exciting and unique events that feature Ukrainian artists and performers. Two weeks ago "Dateline" spotlighted Ukrainian artists in the worlds of opera, ballet and classical music, as well as outstanding events planned by New York's leading Ukrainian community institutions. But that isn't all that's in store for us - there are also art and craft exhibitions, folk dance, music and drama.

Crafting identity

The unique work of 11 artists from across the United States and one from Canada who excel in crafts with innovative forms and designs will be shown in the spacious rooms of the Ukrainian Institute of America, Fifth Avenue and 79th Street, during the November 2-4 weekend.

The exhibit and sale, whose proceeds will benefit The Ukrainian Museum, is sponsored by Branch 113 of the Ukrainian National Women's League of America and the Ukrainian Institute of America. Headlined "Crafting Identity: Twelve Artists Interpret Their Cultural Roots," the show will open with a 6 p.m. reception on Friday, November 2, for a preview and sale of the artists' fine quality crafts.

Viewers will note that ancient techniques have been fused with contemporary aesthetics in the jewelry, ceramics, glass and wood objects, textile designs, egg decorating and silversmithing. The pieces on display are the work of Masha Archer, Boris Dudchenko, Nancy Weeks Dudchenko, Natalia Kormeluk, Lialia Kuchma, Dan Kvitka, Sophia Lada, Nina Lapchyk, Kateryna Nemyra, Zorianna Sokhatska, Valentin Yotkov and Sofia Zielyk.

Chairwoman Ilona Sochynsky-Shyprykevich, herself an artist of high repute, says the pieces in the exhibit are "a moving tribute to the potent mix of myth and memory that constitute one's personal heritage." She noted that this "high-end" exhibit, featuring and promoting artists nationwide and advertised in leading craft magazines, also brought together a number of young Ukrainian professionals such as Adriana Leshko and Lew Rakowsky, who lent their talents in communications and graphic design.

"The show will feature a whole range of objects, as well as a wide range of prices - from $35 to $50 for an exquisite hand-painted ornament to $21,000 for a large hand-made tapestry - so we're anticipating a lot of action," Ms. Sochynsky says.

Ms. Sochynsky, assisted by vice-chairs Ola Lewicky and Daria Mehrle, worked closely with Dr. Walter Hoydysh, the institute's vice-president of programs, and Maria Shust, director of the museum, who was invited to come up with a concept for the installation and in turn was assisted by George Sawicky, architect of the new Ukrainian Museum building.

Here's a closer look at the show's participating artists and its coordinator, beginning with Kyiv-born Masha Archer of San Francisco, whose dramatic and oversized beaded pieces recall both Native American folk art and the traditional gerdan necklaces of her homeland. A restorer and exhibitor at the Museo Nacional de Mexico and later a jewelry and clothing designer in Tucson and San Francisco, she was named Art-to-Wear Jewelry Designer for the U.S. by the New York Fashion Group in 1985. Her work is currently shown in many shops across the country, including Saks Fifth Avenue stores nationwide and the San Francisco Opera Shop, as well as the Firebird Cafe in New York.

Acclaimed glass artist Boris Dudchenko of Pennsylvania, who produces glass sculpture pieces, has had numerous one-man shows as well as stints of teaching at Pittsburgh's prestigious Carnegie-Mellon University and renowned art institutes in the United Kingdom.

Nancy Weeks Dudchenko, a full-time ceramic artist, specializes in one-of-a-kind glazed and painted ceramic wall sculptures. Her works hang in over 200 corporate collections and numerous museums and private collections.

Natalia Kormeluk of Maryland, best known for her wheel-thrown curved vessel forms in black-and-white ceramic, is a full-time instructor of pottery and clay sculpture at The Field School in Washington and a mastercraftsman at Manor College's Ukrainian Heritage Studies Center. She created a large-scale free-standing "pich" (clay-tile oven or kiln) for the University of Pittsburgh's Ukrainian Nationality Room.

Lialia Kuchma of Illinois, the creator of incredibly fine tapestries with glowing, dynamic images, has participated in many solo and group shows, and earned numerous grants and awards.

The sophisticated, eye-catching wood sculptures and decorative objects produced by contemporary craft artist Dan Kvitka of Oregon have been featured in a number of publications, including Architectural Digest, and are included in the permanent collections of such institutions as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Boston's Museum of Fine Arts and the American Craft Museum in New York.

Sophia Lada of Canada draws on distinctly Ukrainian archetypes for her exquisite hand-painted ornaments, and references traditional religious icons for her round plaques.

Nina Lapchyk of Massachusetts creates large-scale wall hangings and hand-painted scarves of silk and cotton, all resonating with cultural, historical and spiritual references to Ukraine's rich heritage.

Kateryna Nemyra reveals primitive and sophisticated creativity in ceramic and clay sculptures, which have been featured in a number of shows both abroad and in the U.S., including her own Svitlytsia art studio and gallery in Parma Heights, Ohio.

Zorianna Sokhatska, a textile artist and teacher in Philadelphia who founded and directs the Palitra art studio in Jenkintown, Pa., creates large woven wool tapestries and delicate painted silk dresses, hats and scarves.

The show's sole non-Ukrainian, the Bulgarian-born Valentin Yotkov, is recognized internationally as a designer, artisan and teacher in the rare field of silversmithing. Mr. Yotkov, who runs his own teaching studio in Brooklyn, turns out sleek contemporary pieces as well as museum-quality reproductions of ancient objects, often with repoussé patterning.

Sofia Zielyk of New York is an expert in the intricate, ancient art of decorating pysanky (Easter eggs), an art she learned at the age of 6 from her mother. She has conducted numerous demonstrations and workshops, among them demos at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Natural History, appears frequently on television and in the print media, and has had her work featured in a number of coffee-table books.

Ms. Sochynsky, a resident of both New York City and Margate, N.J., recently completed a six-month assignment as artist-in-residence for the Noyes Museum of Art in Oceanville, N.J., developing and presenting workshops for the general public and compiling a photographic essay "Portrait of Two Communities" for exhibit at the museum last spring. She has been commissioned by the City of Atlantic City to create and paint a huge mural on the theme of a fishing pier, to be located on a prominent avenue in tribute to the Italian community.

Exhibit tickets are available in various categories, from $25 for museum friends to $1,000 for corporate sponsors, through The Ukrainian Museum at (212) 228-0110. The craft show will be open on Friday, November 2, 6-9 p.m.; Saturday, November 3, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. and Sunday, November 4, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

Here come the Tammies

Five Pennsylvania students of Ukrainian heritage will be performing with the Duquesne University Tamburitzans at the Fashion Institute of New York, 227 W. 27th St., on October 20. They are Jessica Craig of Pittsburgh, Matt Haritan of McMurray, Dana Holomshek from West Mifflin, J.R. Sergeant from Center Township and Elizabeth Skalyo of Bridgeville.

Fresh and effervescent as ever, though the ensemble is in its 65th season, the Tamburitzans will once again bring to life the folk songs, dances and traditions of Central and Eastern Europe, including the Yiddish drinking song "Shprayz Ich Mir" that was popular among Jews in Odesa, Kyiv and Lviv. Their program will also include the comical Siberian wrestlers' dance "Nanayan," once performed by former Tamburitzan Andrij Cybyk and now re-staged by Mr. Cybyk for performance by Mr. Haritan.

The Haritan family, incidentally, has been heavily involved with the Tammies.

Matt's father, Michael Haritan, at one time the group's tour manager, is a professional photographer whose work has been featured in the Tamburitzans' souvenir program for over two decades. Matt's uncle, Tim Haritan, was a Tamburitzan in the 1980s, as was Tim's wife, the former Andrea Elsner. The Haritan family, active for many years with Pittsburgh's Ukrainian cultural community, also belongs to the Poltava Ukrainian folk ensemble that performs annually in the Pittsburgh Folk Festival.

And more events

The Ukrainian Institute's quartet-in-residence, the Leontovych String Quartet, and pianist Bella Davidovich will be featured in the first Music At The Institute (MATI) concert on October 27, celebrating the quartet's 30th anniversary. The program will include Myroslav Skoryk's Partita for String Quartet No. 6, dedicated to the quartet, as well as works by Schumann and Brahms. Among artists included in future MATI concerts are soprano Anna Bachynska, violinist Yuri Kharenko, pianists Marianna Humetska and Mykola Suk, MATI's artistic director, and violinist Oleh Krysa. "Oleh Krysa at 60" will be a special black-tie event on May 11 honoring the founder of Music At The Institute.

Dancer Andrij Cybyk, who performed with the Connecticut Ballet (also known as the Zigzag Ballet) in two original, contemporary works presented in Stamford on September 29, is appearing throughout October with the Brighton Ballet Theater at the famed Russian Tea Room in Manhattan. Mr. Cybyk's work as assistant artistic director of the highly praised Syzokryli Ukrainian Dancers was evident when the ensemble performed last month at the first Ukrainian Festival in Newark, N.J. He is scheduled to perform in the premiere of Michael Mao Dance company's new work "Firecracker" at the State University of New York (Purchase campus) on December 8 and 9.

Andriy Milavsky, whose boisterous Cheres folk ensemble delighted participants at two out-of-state festivals - the Verkhovyna Festival, held this year at the Ukrainian American Youth Association resort, and the Manor College's Ukrainian annual Festival - will be featured as first clarinetist in Mozart's "Requiem" with the One World Symphony at St. Luke's Lutheran Church on West 46th Street in Manhattan on October 20. He will appear in the same program the next day at St. Boniface Church on Willoughby Street in Brooklyn Heights. Performing in September with selected artists at the Lincoln Memorial's Reflecting Pool in Washington for the Peace Vigil honoring the 40th anniversary of the Peace Corps, Mr. Milavsky made a solo appearance playing a floyara (large tenor wood flute) in a Ukrainian lament and the beloved American hymn "Amazing Grace."

Before leaving town to do a CD release concert in London and some follow-up touring in the United Kingdom, bandurist Julian Kytasty predicted that November and December will bring out the sound of banduras loud and clear in this big city. The new CD "Black Sea Winds" on London's November Music label, featuring Kytasty and the Experimental Bandura Trio, will be introduced here on November 2. Later in the month, Victor Mishalow is bringing three of his best students to this city from Toronto so that New Yorkers will have a chance to hear "the next generation of bandura soloists."

In December, former Kytasty student Nadia Tarnavsky of Cleveland, along with tsymbalist Alexander Fedoriuk and sopilka player Andrey Pidkivka, considered by Kytasty "among the best Ukrainian instrumentalists currently in North America," will give a concert sponsored by the New York School of Bandura.

Dancer Stephanie Godino is performing this season in two productions of the New York City Opera. She appears with the NYCO ballet ensemble in Gilbert and Sullivan's "Mikado" and Mozart's "Magic Flute" this month and in November. Away from the NYCO stage, Ms. Godino teaches dance at the Joffrey School of Ballet and directs the choir of All Saints Ukrainian Orthodox Church on East 11th Strreet, where her husband, the Rev. Andrei Kulyk, is the pastor.

If you're looking for laughs to ease the tension of these days, look ahead to the Ukrainian Stage Ensemble's production of Gogol's uproarious "The Inspector General," set for some time this season. Studio director Lydia Krushelnytsky can't give an exact date, because "it takes a good deal of study and rehearsals to get the timing just right in a comedy."

Helen Smindak's e-mail address is [email protected].

| Home Page |