NEW YORK – Hutsuls. The name itself conjures up images of fiercely independent Ukrainian Carpathian mountaineers. Think: “Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors,” the unforgettable 1967 Ukrainian film by director Sergei Parajanov. Artistic, intricate Hutsul woodcarving has been admired for years etched into crosses, inlaid boxes and plates, and in the decoration of Ukrainian wooden churches. But carved wooden sunglasses?
Nick Rozar was aware of his Ukrainian roots since his maternal grandparents immigrated to the New York area from the Ternopil region in 1949. Although he grew up participating in some activities in the local Ukrainian American community, it really wasn’t until 2009, during a five-week program at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, that he developed a strong personal attachment to Ukraine and its culture.
And still later, after a trip to Ukraine in 2014, Mr. Rozar, a 26-year-old who now lives in Brooklyn, became enchanted with all the crafts made by hand of natural materials which he saw, but did not want to purchase purely for decoration. When he returned home, he talked a bit with his parents about his experience in Ukraine. He mused: “…I want to support Ukraine… What can we make in a natural material that people can use?”. So he considered some possibilities and came up with the idea of carved wooden sunglasses.
“I want to turn normal wooden sunglasses into art. Let’s allow people to wear art,” said Mr. Rozar. He traveled back to the Ivano-Frankivsk region in June 2015, visiting Carpathian villages and inquiring about woodcarvers who could create his new product. He finally found three woodcarver artists in the Kosiv region. “Big Mykola” is well known in the local Carpathian wood art community. Both he and Taras, a second woodcarver, are graduates of the Kosiv Institute of Applied and Decorative Art. The third artist, Ivan, is a master woodcarving craftsman who learned his trade from his brothers. The trio now produce all of Mr. Rozar’s carved wooden sunglasses.
Nick Rozar sells his sunglasses online, but most people buy his product at outdoor markets in the New York area. He says it’s the kind of product that needs to be shown and tried on in person. He has expanded beyond sunglasses to handmade-in-Ukraine wallets, backpacks and other unique items. “It was never really about wooden sunglasses. People in Ukraine can make amazing things,” he explained. “Buy Ukrainian and support Ukraine.”
Readers can find out more about Mr. Rozar and his Ukrainian wearable art products in a November 2017 interview on the “Krynytsya” (The Well) podcast at: https://soundcloud.com/krynytsya/hetmans.
Mike Buryk is a Ukrainian American writer whose research and articles cover a wide variety of topics. In addition to “Krynytsya,” he also hosts and produces another monthly podcast: “Made in Ukraine Tech Startup Edition” https://soundcloud.com/ukrainetech . You can reach him at [email protected].