Annual meeting of The Ukrainian Museum focuses on finances (08/21/05)

Annual meeting of The Ukrainian Museum focuses on finances

by Marta Baczynsky

NEW YORK - During the many years that it took for the new Ukrainian Museum facility to be built, the museum's annual meeting was almost always held in the second floor "conference room" at its former location on Second Avenue. The presence of many people would usually overwhelm the laboring, aging air conditioner, and the few fans, provided by the staff, would only send New York's sweltering June heat from one end of the room to the other.

It was a given that during the annual meeting it would be hot and the question "When is the new museum building going to be ready?" would be the issue of the day.

This year brought about dramatic and welcome changes. The 2005 annual meeting was the first held at the museum's newly constructed, modern facility at 222 E. Sixth St. in New York City. About 80 members and friends of the institution attended the proceedings, which were held in the comfort of the new building's lower-level auditorium, with cooling provided by central air conditioning.

The persistent "when" question that has come up before the board of trustees and the Building Committee for the past several years became a moot point in April of this year, when the new museum building opened its doors to the public.

The elegant, new facility and the spectacular inaugural exhibition, "Alexander Archipenko: Vision and Continuity," have more than satisfied the expectations of members, supporters and friends of the institution and charmed members of the media, who responded with wonderful reviews that brought hundreds of visitors to the museum's doors.

Notwithstanding this success, a new question emerged during the annual meeting: "Now that the museum has been built, what is necessary to ensure its further growth and development, and where will this support come from?"

This subject was the theme of the address that Olha Hnateyko, president of the museum's board of trustees, delivered to the audience with a great deal of passion. Mrs. Hnateyko, who has headed the museum's governing body for the past six years, is well versed in the fiscal demands and problems of a non-profit institution. She presented to the listeners a well-rounded financial report on the building project from its onset in 1986 and the purchase of the property on East Sixth Street, to the completion of construction of the new museum facility.

Mrs. Hnateyko said that the total expenses incurred to bring the building project to its successful completion reached $11 million. The figure of $9 million, as reported previously in the media, represents the cost of construction alone and does not include the purchase of the property on which the museum was built, paying off the mortgage, the architect's fees, removal of asbestos from the existing structure, lawyers' fees and other costs relating to the project.

She also informed the audience that it will cost more than $500,000 annually to maintain and run the new museum. This figure is considered conservative by some, given the size of the new building (25,000 square feet) and the cost of basic necessities such as electricity, various insurances, administrative expenses, etc.). The organization of exhibitions and programs bring additional cost to this budget. "Yes, we are talking about a great deal of money, but we are confident that with the continued support of our members and donors, our financial institutions and the steadfast support of the Ukrainian National Women's League of America, the museum can continue its work. We are anticipating an increase in the number of endowment funds, and the museum will intensify its efforts in applying for grants to government and private funding agencies. With the younger generation taking a more active role in the museum, we expect our institution to have a great and successful future," said the board president.

The new Ukrainian Museum was built thanks to the generous donations of individuals, financial institutions and organizations from the greater Ukrainian American community. Mrs. Hnateyko cited the continued and steadfast support of the museum founders, the UNWLA, and hailed the generosity of major benefactors - Eugene and Daymel Shklar, and SelfReliance New York Federal Credit Union.

As a not-for-profit institution, The Ukrainian Museum depends on its grass roots support (membership and donations) to basically ensure its day-to-day operations. Although the museum does receive some grants from government agencies, in general the amounts are small. The museum did receive a $91,360 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), but it is for a very specific purpose: to develop educational and marketing initiatives in the new museum building. Grants from the corporate sector and from private foundations are very difficult to obtain. In general, there is fierce competition for grants on the national, state and local level.

Maria Shust, director of the museum, spoke about its activities in 2004, saying that the year was spent in preparing for the opening of the new museum building, the inaugural exhibition, the publication of the exhibition's bilingual catalogue, as well as relocation to the new facility. She also detailed for the audience the great success the Archipenko exhibition has been enjoying. "The press coverage has been extensive and the number of visitors and tours to the museum has been most impressive," said the director.

Nicolas Andreadis, chair of the Building Committee, gave a concise report about the committee's work, explaining the measures that had to be taken to deal with problems as they arose during the course of the building project. He credited the board with a wise decision in 2002 to proceed with the construction despite difficult site conditions, a move that saved the museum $500,000 per year for the two years that it took for the new building to be built. Mr. Andreadis, a developer who has many years experience in the construction business, said the museum building project was "challenging."

Other members of the board - Dr. Yar Mociuk, treasurer, and Vasyl Sosiak, chair of the Audit Committee, also presented reports on their areas of responsibility.

George Sawicki, the architect of the new museum building, identified The Ukrainian Museum project as "the focal point" of his professional career. As a principal of Sawicki Tarella Architecture + Design, Mr. Sawicki's work on the new museum began in 1992.

He said: "This has been a long and arduous road from 1992 to today, but the sacrifices and dedication that have been shown by everyone in this process are most certainly justified by the building that we sit in today, which is a living testament to the strength of our Ukrainian community, and which will always be a symbol of heritage and pride for our entire community, our children and their children for years to come."

During the course of the annual meeting other issues were brought to the attention of the audience. Among these were: the importance of expanding the museum's collections, particularly the fine arts collection, and of researching and finding individuals who own fine art works and creating a database of such information to draw upon for exhibitions, research and possible donations to the collection; expanding museum membership, particularly getting young people to become museum enthusiasts and participants in its programs; and expanding the museum's base of support by enriching the museum's address pool for membership expansion and fundraising purposes.

It was announced during the annual meeting that the museum received a collection of art works from Helen Prociuk, a long-time member of the UNWLA and a community activist, who was relocating to Ukraine. Mrs. Prociuk enriched the museum's fine arts collection with paintings and drawings by such Ukrainian artists as Jacques Hnizdovsky, Vasyl Krychevsky, Mykola Nedilko and Yurij Solovij, among others. The donation was presented to the museum under the auspices of Branch 83 of the UNWLA.

As part of its inaugural year celebrations, the museum is preparing exciting events for the fall. On September 17 a symposium will be held in conjunction with the exhibition "Alexander Archipenko: Vision and Continuity" (the exhibition has been extended to September 18). Art historians and scholars have been invited to take part in the exploration of the current scholarship on Archipenko. The symposium, hosted by the museum in collaboration with the Archipenko Foundation, is co-sponsored by the Cooper Union Office of Continuing Education and Public Programs, and will be held in the Wollman Auditorium at Cooper Union in New York City.

As part of the inaugural year's events The Ukrainian Museum will host a luncheon on Sunday, September 25, at the elegant Essex House on the south side of Central Park in New York City. This event will feature as keynote speaker writer/editor Askold Melnyczuk; appearing in the musical program will be John Stetch, jazz pianist. The event is billed as a fund-raiser for the new museum. Detailed information on the symposium and the luncheon are available by calling the museum at (212) 228-0110.

The annual meeting was chaired by Askold Lozynsky, and the minutes were recorded by Lydia Andrusyshyn.

The annual meeting assembly voted in several new members to the 2005-2006 slate of the board of trustees. Ms. Hnateyko was elected president for a fourth term.

The 2005-2006 slate of The Ukrainian Museum board of trustees also comprises: Iryna Kurowyckyj, Tatiana Tershakovec and Maria Tomorug, vice-presidents; Yar Mociuk, treasurer; Zirka Voronka and Orysia Z. Woloszyn Dmytrenko, secretaries; Orest Glut, Nicolas Andreadis and Irenaeus Yurchuk, members-at-large.

Elected as members of the board were: Anna Alyskewycz, Katria Czerwoniak, Mykola Haliv, Sophia Hewryk, Ulana Kobzar, Lidia Krushelnytsky, Andrew Lencyk, Yaroslawa Luchechko, Zenon Masnyj, Rostislav Milanytch, Maria Polanskyj, Anna Rak, Roma Shuhan, Olga Stawnychy and Oksana Trytjak.

Audit Committee members are: Wasyl Sosiak (chair), Nadia Cwiach, Donna Czechowycz, Ihor Hayda and Wolodymyr Magun.

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