From childhood passion for embroidery to the revival of Trypillia heritage
"My name is Viktoriia Poplavska. I live in the Kyiv region, in the city of Vyshhorod," this is how the winner of the revolving fund competition from Its Craft begins her story. Her path to creating her own collection of clothes with Trypillian ornaments began in her childhood, when she first became acquainted with Ukrainian embroidery.
"Since childhood, I have been in love with Ukrainian embroidery. It surrounded me everywhere: at my grandmothers' and great-grandmothers' houses in the village, in my grandmother's apartment, with whom I started embroidering," recalls Viktoriia. However, for a long time, embroidery remained just a hobby. The future craftswoman was more engaged in sewing clothes, theater and dance costumes.
The turning point was the event of 2014, when Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. "With the beginning of the Russian invasion in 2014, I became more interested in history, and my childhood memories inspired me to first observe Ukrainian ornamentation, then to study it more deeply. Apparently, pre-war tension was already in the air then, and I really wanted to find a sign or symbol that would remind every Ukrainian of their deep roots, bring them back to reality when they looked or touched it, and leave them without doubt, give them strength."
A workshop that tells stories through embroidery
At this stage, work began on creating a machine embroidery workshop. "Before the large-scale invasion, we gathered a team of girls who dreamed of starting to reproduce traditional ornaments on modern shirts. So we started doing it and opened a machine embroidery workshop." Shirts began to appear in the workshop, each with its own story inspired by Ukrainian traditions.
"In our workshop, we create shirts of strength with their own stories, and these stories prove every time the depth of our culture and traditions, our very ancient roots, our persistence in our beliefs. It is inspiring. With each product, the world becomes one more person who shares our values. This is the mission - to help people broadcast our identity, culture, continuity of our heritage and help the world accept Ukrainians as an independent nation with its unique European culture and history."
New inspiration - Trypillian culture
She got acquainted with Trypillian culture during the hackathon Mythologizing Trypillia. It was this event that finally determined the direction in which Viktoriia began to move. "When I came to the Mythologizing Trypillia hackathon, I met a large community of like-minded people who are deeply and professionally researching the history of Ukraine. The topic of Trypillia inspired me to think that Trypillian ornamentation could become a driving force in forming a statement about the depth of Ukraine and its unity with Europe."
After a careful study of the ornaments, the craftswoman became convinced that these symbols convey important messages from the depths of millennia. "And the study of Trypillian symbols convinced me that Trypillian signs are the basis from which it all began. They convey our power and tradition, our many thousands of years of history. They remind us that we are the descendants of a great civilization, and we have something to fight for, something to show the world."
"It`s Craft" contest and new collection
To realize her idea of creating a collection of embroidered items with Trypillian ornaments, Viktoriia took part in the It`s Craft revolving fund competition. "To create a collection of embroidered items with Trypillian ornaments, I decided to take part in the It`s Craft revolving fund competition. The money I received allowed me to buy literature with beautiful samples of ornaments, fabrics and materials for making samples, and to pay for the work of a designer to create embroidery programs."
However, not everything was implemented on time. "Of course, it was planned to finish work on production samples earlier, but another many-hour power outage due to the aggressor's strikes changed the plans, and only part of the plan was realized. But I continue to work on the collection."
The artist dreams of the world associating Trypillia ornaments with Ukraine: "I really want the world to say, 'Oh, Ukraine,' not 'Greece,' when they see a certain meander. I want the world to accept that Trypillia is more ancient than the pyramids, and it is majestic."
A symbol of joy and faith
At the end of the educational studios, each of the participants received a souvenir from It`s Craft. For Viktoriia, it was a special moment. "I got a small vase with a Trypillian smiley face emoticon. I liked it so much that I jumped to the sky. And I kissed it. And everyone was laughing. In a good way."
Now this little symbol has a special place in her home. "Now it stands in my house so that I see it first thing in the morning. It gives me joy and confidence. It reminds me how many strong and incredible people are around me. Enthusiastic and unbreakable. With such people, we have no right to fail. We have something to protect and defend."
Big plans ahead
Viktoriia is currently continuing to work on her collection, full of faith in the importance of the mission she is fulfilling. Her story is a vivid example of how traditional symbols can not only preserve the memory of the past, but also open up a new Ukraine to the world.
