About the culture of unity of craft producers
The project does not have a wide advertising campaign, few people know about it, so manufacturers cannot contact me yet - I look for them myself. I see who is doing what and whether I like it. I invite those whose products interest me to cooperate. I suggest that people try to realize my ideas in their own creative way and, if they succeed, become regular contractors of the "It's Craft" foundation to fulfill repeat orders. That is, first the craftsmen work as creators, and only then as regular suppliers.
The Trypillia collection already includes jewelry. My ideas were picked up by the "Golden Lily" company and the "Secret Garden" workshop. "Golden Lily" is a jewelry manufacture in general. Before the full-scale invasion, the team was developing significantly in Kherson, and now they are forced to work in Odesa and Warsaw. "When I was still living in Nova Kakhovka and working in branding, I made a logo for them, and that's how we met. Of course, these are not small craftsmen whom I primarily invite to cooperate. But I wanted to support the company as IDPs.
From the creators of the "Golden Lily", the collection includes the "Snake" mono-ring in gold and silver. This image, by the way, is common to both Trypillians and Scythians. It's just that the Trypillians have a more stylized snake. As a symbol of flexibility and wisdom, it was painted on jugs in the form of an infinity sign. But the Scythians' snake, the uroboros, looks like a ring.
There is also a pendant "Bull" by Secret Garden. Well, that's how I say "bull". In fact, the Trypillians had an ox, or veles, known from a later culture. Interestingly, the Trypillians had both a female sacred figure, the Mother Goddess, and a male one, the Bull and Taurus. They even had horns hanging above the entrance to their temples.
I have been following "Secret Garden" on Instagram for a long time. I liked their original products, and they agreed to make several items - bull, griffin and ouroboros pendants - when I offered to cooperate.
We also work with a company we were lucky enough to find recently in Vinnytsia - Exclusive Jewelry. I was lucky because the founder, Denys, quickly realized what I wanted and was ready to go for any experiments that others did not undertake. They quickly made us a few items based on our sketches - Tree of Life pendants, a replica Trypillian goddess pendant, and a replica of a Scythian deer, which you will definitely recognize if you have ever seen Scythian outfits - it was used as a patch to decorate a hat.
Craftsmen are very different. Some are open to experimentation. Others work with a ready-made set of options. But all of them are unique, and that's what makes them fascinating.
It is not easy to start. I am so inspired, I want everything at once. And manufacturers can't keep up with me - they don't have time, there are few specialists now. For example, I planned to make 24 pieces of jewelry by the end of November, but it turned out that the production of one piece can take from two to five months. So we are working slowly but surely.
About the language that clay speaks
Ceramics is a separate story. This is a special space for creativity. And I was lucky to find talented craftsmen quickly. I gave the ceramists topics, and they interpreted them through their own vision. I did not limit the producers in any way. On the contrary, I encouraged them to work as creatively as possible. They are doing a great job.
Ceramists create practical things, mostly dishes. For example, Polina Borzakova from Odesa made a vase and bowls on four legs. This is the KAPSI brand. Iryna Prasol and her colleagues in Dnipro work separately, under the brand name Keramira. We have a lot of products from her - there are paintings, author's techniques, and even carved elements. Another ceramist is Bohdan Chabaniuk, the son of the director of the Trypillia Culture State Historical and Cultural Reserve. "I ordered a series of dishes with the logo of the Kentavrida project from Bohdan, the dishes were created using a potter's wheel, in a more traditional manner, but all on four legs, as it was in Trypillia.
I also ordered ceramics from the craftsmen of the Cherkasy Craftsmen's Union. They made small statuettes in the form of Trypillian women. The products turned out to be replicas, that is, a minimum of modernization: the forms are similar to those that were 7,000 years ago, red clay and milk. These craftsmen approached the work with the greatest reverence because they have studied culture for a long time and feel the revival of its significance now, during the war, and believe that after the victory Ukraine will become the basis for harmony in many countries, precisely because of the ancient beliefs and values that we are now raising from our cultural roots.
The Trypillian Foremother had two forms. One was flat, which could be taken in the hand like a knife, and the other was seated. Sitting figures are sacred symbols, we can assume that they are temple objects. And the flat ones are more amulet-like things, because Trypillians carried them in their hands or hid them under their clothes, closer to their bodies. We reproduced the sitting figure as an interior item and, according to your faith, a talisman. By the way, there is a theory that it was a talisman for women in labor. When a woman was pregnant, she was given such a figure, and when it was time to give birth, the figure was broken, as if the soul had already entered the child's body and the amulet had fulfilled its function. So everything can be a fable. The main thing for us is that we have stirred up this wave of curiosity and questions of faith.
About the specifics of promoting meanings and business approaches
The products are sold on the "It's Craft" website. They receive a fee as soon as they fulfill an order. And we have to promote all these things so that people know about them and buy them. The "Kentavrida" artist support program is a social and charitable cultural project. I don't know yet how the jewelry will be sold, but ceramics are already in demand - we are already ordering replicas of products in a small group. The craft food on the website sells itself. But creativity, like any product with meaning, is important to present correctly.
We imagine people who love beautiful things as buyers of our new collections, because it is primarily about aesthetics and history. Often, people are looking for unique things. The same mono-earring—it stretches from the lobe to the very top of the ear; the snake wraps around the entire ear in a figure eight; it looks incredibly cool. Such jewelry would be worn by a very extravagant person.
Ceramics can be ordered by salons, studios, and interior designers. "Kentavrida is creative, it is interesting to work with them.
I also want Kentavrida's collections to become popular among tourists. They can be participants in international exhibitions where we will present our product, and they can be guests who will come to Ukraine after the victory and explore our nation. Ukrainian flag merchandise is now popular in the world. Ukrainians have come up with merchandise with the dog Patron and "fighting" geese because we know the context. These meanings are now on the surface. But if you look deep into Ukrainian culture, you will find fundamental evidence of us, the foundation of our strength.
About the benefits of participating in the Artist Support Program
First, it's an order. If we ask artisans to make something unique and do it the way we want, we pay money for the production of these things. So, the "It's Craft" Foundation is an investor for manufacturers. Secondly, craftsmen do not need to promote themselves and their products. They create - we advertise. And we sell them. And we order again.
In fact, we are building a network of artisans who make modern things with a historical background to meet the needs of the development of Ukrainian culture to our order. This is supported by the creators.
The project also includes an information campaign. Articles and posts are published about the producers. It's one thing when artists write about themselves, and another when journalists work for them. We talk about them at exhibitions. In addition, all the creators involved in the project can participate in a competition from the "It's Craft" Revolver Fund to realize their own ideas. Now they are realizing my dreams, and then they will be able to realize theirs.
About the true meaning of the fictional word "Kentavrida"
This is from my early childhood. I didn't like to read when I was little, but I loved to look through books. At home, we had a huge book about the myths of Ancient Greece, and there were also books about astrology and the stars. At first, I was interested in looking at everything, and then studying it.
My zodiac sign is Sagittarius. Indeed, it is one of the most active and energetic signs, symbolized by the centaur, a warlike creature that also represents teachers and spiritual masters. I liked this image even then. And when I became a student, understood myself more and felt better about what I was doing, I began to associate myself with Taurus. Taurus is a bull or an ox. It is a symbol of patience, decency and hard work. I was born in the year of the bull, and I like this image too. And in adulthood, I found evidence of respect for the symbol of the bull in different cultures.
So these two masculine symbols merged into one name, which now sounds like a woman's voice. And I think Ukraine is a country with a female culture. "Kentavrida" became my personal signature long before the project, I came up with it as a pseudonym in my first year of university, and now the word has acquired the fullness of meaning through charitable and cultural projects.
When I came up with the name, I immediately patented it. I thought, let it be, and then I'll make something out of it. And that's exactly what happened. When my colleagues and I created the "It's Craft" foundation and when Ukrainian artisans who share a common passion for creativity began to unite around us, we realized the idea of calling the art of modernizing the culture of our ancestors "Kentavrida". Not with our own hands, but with the hands of other people. But maybe it's better that way.
