Charity project "Kherson Region is Ukraine"

Victoria Kulakova, the head of the CF ""It's Craft"", answers the questions from the journalist of "Kherson +".

What is the exhibition "Kherson Region is Ukraine" about? What is its purpose and significance?

The exhibitions "Kherson Region is Ukraine" are held as part of the artistic charity project "Kherson Region is Ukraine". Our goal is to support people who are under occupation and cannot leave, all Ukrainians and, of course, the Armed Forces of Ukraine. We held a 12-day art residency in Uman, where 20 artists painted pictures - honored artists who are members of the Union of Artists of Ukraine, and young artists who are not yet known, but all very talented. They created the main exposition of the exhibition - about 60 works in various genres from classical to art and experimental techniques. Another 40 paintings are sent to us by artists who also want to join the project: they send paintings that will also travel to cities for exhibitions, and then all of them will be sold at an online auction and the funds will go to the Armed Forces to liberate the territories from the enemy. Another interesting component of the project is the creation and sale of merchandise: the artists and I agreed that images of their paintings could be printed on various items and they would also be sold in favor of the Armed Forces, and then, after the liberation of our country's territory, the funds would go to rebuild cultural monuments in the South, for example, the "stone embroideries" in the city of Nova Kakhovka. Stone embroideries are carved patterns on raw tinker (a special cement mortar for exterior reliefs) created by the artist Hryhorii Dovzhenko, who is not well known by Ukrainians because he was one of the Boychukists who barely survived the Executed Generation because of their pro-Ukrainian opinion. If a person cannot buy the painting at the auction, a lot of people will be able to buy postcards, wooden magnets with the painting on them, or notebooks with the painting on the cover, or phone stands or pillows to support the Kherson region.

How did the idea for this project come about?

The idea for the project came to Pavlo Yarmii, the head of the NGO Regional Development Agency of the Tavrian Association of Territorial Communities. "We were under occupation for two months, we know very well and understand how difficult it is emotionally. We were able to leave, but our parents and friends remained there, and Pavlo's wife stayed there to take care of his elderly mother. All of us there were supported not so much by bread as by the song about the red viburnum and the words "Russian warship go ..." - this is support of the soul, spiritual, it is about culture and our values.  That is why the project is artistic, why we create beautiful paintings and things with the soul and value of our Ukrainian roots and codes.

By the way, the project is open-ended, so even after all the exhibitions are over, we can still receive paintings from artists by mail and sell them for the benefit of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the It's Craft website in the Paintings section and sell items with printed images of paintings.  In this way, the project will increase the benefits and raise funds for the revival and life of the occupied and then liberated territories.

How long did the preparation take? Where did you look for artists and how did you choose the works for the exhibition?

The preparations were very fast. We came up with the project at the end of July, and on August 24, Independence Day, we welcomed the artists to Uman. We invited them both on the recommendations of our friends and through an advertisement about the residency on social networks. The selection was based on the examples of paintings they sent us by e-mail. The thematic framework for the paintings was quite broad, because we were interested in making sure that the paintings would appeal to different people in terms of taste and age.

Who organizes the project and exhibitions?

The project is organized by the NGO "Regional Development Agency of the Tavrian Association of Territorial Communities" and the charity fund " It's Craft". The project is supported by the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation, which provides us with information support and hopes to help us organize an exhibition in Kyiv. The NGO "The World through the Eyes of Artists" helped us to organize the residency. Local activists and the departments of culture of local councils help us organize exhibitions in Ukrainian cities such as Uman, Kryvyi Rih, Odesa, and Lviv.

How many works are currently on display? And how many artists are participating?

There are about 70 paintings in the exhibition. Why about 70, because there are actually more than 100 paintings: 99 paintings are physically in our possession, but not all halls can accept them for the exhibition. 46 artists have provided their physical works and more than 10 artists and illustrators have sent electronic images of paintings that will also participate in the auction and will be sent to buyers after the sale. We are still receiving applications to join the project, so we believe that the project will not end as long as artists, illustrators, and other creators want to submit images, and people around the world want to support Ukraine and buy your works in physical, NFT format, or as a printed product.

Tell us about the auction and the charitable basis of the project.

The auction is scheduled for November-December. The project is alive and changing. We imagine that there will be cities that will also be willing to host the exhibition in Ukraine and abroad. We are still planning exhibitions in Ukrainian cities, but we are already negotiating with Polish cities, looking for local partners to help organize logistics, expositions, and invite people. We are planning at least Polish cities. It will be seen later. Thus, the auction will be held no earlier than November, and possibly later. The online auction will be scheduled for one day. And all the paintings can be found not only at the exhibitions, but also on the It's Craft website.

We are currently working on this part of the project, and in a day or two you will be able to see the paintings on the website. The paintings will be labeled "Charity". People will leave applications for the purchase of a particular work, and we can invite all those registered in this way to the auction platform on a specific day. Some paintings can be bought now. We do this because we need to return at least part of the invested funds for further exhibitions. Unfortunately, Ukrainians don't have much money now, and we have received very few charitable contributions for this project, only about 19,000 UAH, and there are no grants. The initiator Pavlo himself is in fact the largest investor in the project. We hope that the information wave about the exhibitions will increase interest and trust in the organizers and we will be able to find partners and benefactors to hold the auction and all the exhibitions at the highest level. Again, all the funds raised will go to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the charitable purpose of the project. All the components and stages of the project, as well as accounts for charitable contributions, can be found in the article about the Kherson Region is Ukraine project on the organizers' websites - on the website of It's Craft https://itscraft.com.ua/kherson-tse-ukraina/ and on the website of the RDA TATC https://www.arr.ks.ua/hersonshhina-tse-ukrayina-2.

Kryvyi Rih is the second location for the exhibition, as far as I know, the first was Uman. Which cities should we expect to see the exhibition next? Perhaps it will be Europe?

On September 29, the exhibition will be opened in Odesa in two locations: "House with an Angel" and "Victory Gardens" in the Arcadia district. The exhibition will run for at least two weeks. Odesa will have the largest presentation of paintings, because two locations have opened their doors to us, and we hope to exhibit all 99 works. We will do our best. Then we plan to go to Kyiv and Lviv. If we find partners in Vinnytsia and other cities in Western Ukraine, we will have exhibitions in other cities as well. We are interested in everyone seeing Kherson Region is Ukraine because the exhibition is so strong that it is inspiring, the works are imbued with the spirit of victory and a strong free Ukrainian spirit.