Art and museums
On February 15, The Ukrainian Museum in New York presented the first exhibit showcasing avant-garde artists who shaped early 20th century Ukrainian theater and influenced the theatrical world stage. “Staging the Ukrainian Avant-Garde of the 1910s and 1920s” featured modernist artists, many of them exiled or executed during Stalin’s purges of the 1930s. The exposition included art works of costume, set and make-up design, as well as photographs and original posters, and principally the art of Vadym Meller, who would become the principal designer for the Berezil Artistic Association, led by director Les Kurbas.
Petro Humenyuk’s “St. Nicholas” (2014).
“Iconart: Visions of a World Unseen,” an exhibit of contemporary sacred art from Ukraine, opened at the Ukrainian Institute of America in New York on March 20. In cooperation with Iconart Gallery in Lviv, this exposition illustrated the ties between medieval religious iconography and current interpretations of the sacred. The works centered on images of “the world unseen”: a sinner in search of paradise, man in search of God, heroes and seducers, and saints and traitors.
The Ukrainian Institute of America on March 28 launched an exposition called “Mystical Power of the Pysanka, Ukrainian Easter Eggs by Sofika Zielyk.” Ms. Zielyk was awarded a Fulbright grant for her research about the influence of folk art on the work of eastern Ukrainian artists of the early 20th century. On June 24, she also exhibited her works at the newly built America House, a component of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv.
The unique pictorial style from the Ukrainian Zaporozhian Kozak settlements along the Dnipro river valley near Dnipropetrovsk was showcased by The Ukrainian Museum in New York starting May 10. This exhibit was titled “Petrykivka: The Soul of Ukraine.” Named after a village, Petrykivka art originated as a colorful decorative tradition in central Ukraine, as painting of interior and exterior adobe white-washed walls, ceiling beams and hearths, as well as decorations on furniture, boxes and wooden kitchenware. Motifs include a great variety of stylized bird, flower and garden elements. In 2013 UNESCO added the Petrykivka art form to its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
On March 27, the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art in Chicago opened the exhibit “Australian Artists from Ukraine,” which showcased the work of six Ukrainian artists who settled in Australia following World War II. According to Australian art critic Paul Haefliger: “Of all the foreign aspirants who have visited these shores since the war, Michael Kmit [one of the six artists] is the only one who has made any impression on the present generation of painters.” Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott sent a letter of appreciation for this exhibit.
The Ukrainian National Museum in Chicago unveiled the exhibit “Apostle of Peace” on July 17 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky’s birth. The exposition included personal letters, photos, relics and other artifacts and was meant to honor the metropolitan’s contributions to the Church, his philanthropy for youth and the arts in Ukraine, and his humanitarian deeds sheltering those sought by the Nazis. The Rev. Ivan Kaszczak, author of “Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky and the Establishment of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States” spoke at the opening.
A wedding costume from the Black and Azov sea region.
In celebration of Ukrainian Heritage Day in Toronto, the Ukrainian Museum of Canada – Ontario Branch opened its newest exhibit “Diverse Yet United Part 2” on September 10. (In 2014, “Diverse Yet United Part 1” featured costumes from the ethnographic regions along Ukraine’s western border.) Part 2 of this exhibit consisted of exquisitely embroidered shirts and complex full costumes from the southern, eastern, central regions of Ukraine and part of western Ukraine: the Black and Azov sea regions, the Sloboda region, Central Dnipro region, Podillia and Pokuttia, as well as a striking Crimean Tatar wedding dress. The display included information about notable Ukrainian public figures born in the regions presented in the exhibit.
A Crimean Tatar wedding costume.
“The Ukrainian Diaspora: Women Artists, 1908-2015,” which opened at The Ukrainian Museum in New York on October 18, was the first major exhibition to examine the relationship between Ukrainian identity and women artists beyond the borders of Ukraine. It featured over 100 works by 43 artists, primarily from North America. The works included icon painting and the traditional genres of still life, portraiture and landscape, in addition to figurative sculpture, abstract painting, tapestry and mixed-media works.
Meanwhile, in Hamtramck, Mich., the Ukrainian American Archives and Museum (UAAM) of Detroit purchased a much-needed larger building to reach a broader audience and to increase the visibility of the Ukrainian heritage. Throughout the years, the UAAM had become the repository of a great quantity of traditional crafts, historical documents, photos, archives and books of local prominent Americans of Ukrainian descent.
Irma Osadsa’s “Talisman No. 26” (2011, conte crayon and pastel on paper).
Christina (Holowchak) Debarry’s “SoHo” (2001, dry pastels on textured watercolor paper).
On May 9 an installation called “Home East” by Waldemar Klyuzko covered the windows of the Ukrainian Institute of America in New York with symbolic red and white jagged lines of tape. The intent was to adapt these universal colors for danger to let everyone know about the present war and crisis in eastern Ukraine.
Yaroslava Surmach Mills’ “Easter Visit to Grandparents” (not dated, reverse painting on glass).
The opening night of “Home East” included a performance by Yara Arts Group of poems by Serhiy Zhadan. Mr. Zhadan is a noted writer of the post-independence generation in Ukraine and had previously read his works at The Ukrainian Museum in New York on March 13, and in Philadelphia on March 15. His poems feature prominently in Yara’s new production “Hitting Bedrock.” This new work opened in New York on February 20, presenting an entire new cycle of poetry written by Mr. Zhadan. “Hitting Bedrock” refers to the present war-torn situation of residents of the former mining town of Donetsk.