The title of this post is a Ukrainian proverb. After I visited the Ukrainian museum I wanted to find a Ukrainian saying that would accompany my post.  I almost gave up because I couldn’t find what I was looking for, the Ukrainians have some very cheeky proverbs — “if you marry a young woman, make sure your friends stay outside.”  Finally I found this one and it’s true, you don’t see the world if you only look outside your window.  My eyes have been opened to the Ukraine.   The Ukrainian museum was founded in 1976 by the Ukrainian National Women’s League of America and the Museum was hailed as one of the finest achievements of the Ukrainian American community.  I decided to Uber to the museum.  When I got into the car, the driver said, “you are going to the Ukrainian Museum (I had put the destination into my reservation), is it a Russian museum?”  I said no, it’s Ukrainian.  I can understand why he thought this because the line between Ukraine and Russia has been blurry for many years..  Russia and Ukraine have been joined at the hip for a long time but Ukraine has always wanted independence and freedom.  Someone once said, “With Ukraine, Russia is an Empire, without it, Russia is just another country.”  An interesting fact is that Ukraine was among the first nations to sign onto the United Nations Charter, entering the group of the UN founding states of 51 nations.  Today the UN membership stands at 193 nations.  As we have seen and heard in the news over the past couple of years, Russia is having a hard time letting the Ukraine go.  After Ukranian President Yanukovych announced his intention to sign an agreement with the European Union but ultimately refused to do so and at the last minute, signed a treaty and multibillion-dollar loan with Russia, “Euromaiden” was born. That was the nickname for the conflict that erupted on November 21st, 2013 when over 2,000 Ukrainians protested the corruption of their government.  The Ukrainians want to become part of the European Union.  I wanted to give a little background because the first exhibit that I visited was called Heroes for Freedom.  I started my visit with a movie about the conflict happening in Ukraine. The people want their independence from Russia.  They distrust their leaders and they are being killed and their country invaded.  We haven’t heard much about it lately but it is still going on and the causalities have reached a little over 9,000.  One of those casualties was Markian Paslawsky. He was born in New York City to parents from the Ukraine. He graduated from  West Point Academy in 1981 and served in the US Army until 1986.  In 1992 he moved to the Ukraine just as the country was struggling to establish itself as a nation.  When the Euromaiden conflict broke out in late 2013, Markian was inspired by the protesters and their desire for change to join the Donbas Battalion and its battle on the front lines.  Unfortunately his journey ended here.

He died a hero-a Ukrainian of American descent. Let’s hope that this conflict comes to a peaceful end and the Ukrainians get what they have wanted all along, independence from Russia once and for all.

 

Next I moved on to The Ukrainian Diaspora:  Woman Artists 1908-2015.  This exhibition was organized in celebration of the 90th Anniversary of the founding of the Ukriaian National Women’s League of America. The featured image is one of the artists on display.  I thought that the title “Silencing the Cacophony” is a perfect depiction of what is happening in the Ukraine right now.  The purpose of the exhibition is to expand the notions of “Ukrainianess” beyond the typical associations of woman’s folk art.  Most of the artists are over 50 and have experienced many of the issues associated with the woman’s liberation movement.  The art was as diverse as the artists, who were born in in a variety of countries -Poland, US, Ukraine and Austria, but all of Ukrainian descent.

This is just a small example of the works on display.

There were two other exhibits; one called “Life in Wood” which featured boxes, musical instruments, decorative plates and many other objects beautifully carved out of wood.

The next exhibit was “Sixty Years An Artist: Zenowj Onyshkewych.”  He emigrated to the US in 1949 and settled with his family on the lower east side of Manhattan.  He started taking classes at the Art Students League of New York.  He had a varied career, from painting romantic landscapes to a portrait of the Pope Paul the VI to  caricatures for The New York Times and the National Observer.  Here are a couple of examples of his beautiful work which is featured in many collections in the US and around the world.

I highly recommend a visit to Ukrainian museum.  It is located in a beautiful building on 6th Street between 2nd Avenue and Cooper Square.  I think that we have all become numb to hearing about the struggles that are taking place around the world and we lose sight of the human aspect and the deep traditions of the people involved.  A visit to the Ukrainian museum will invest you a little more in what you are hearing about the Ukraine in the news.  They have a beautiful little gift shop and the museum admission is $8 for an adult.  The adventure continues next week….