On Saturday October 1st, at the historic Garemijnzaal in Bruges, the “Ukrainian Art Week” opened under the auspices of renowned Ukrainian artist Svitlana Lebiga, member of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine, president of the Cultural Centre of Ukraine in Belgium, and herself a resident of Bruges for many years.
In the presence of Dirk De fauw, Burgemeester of Bruges, and Chargè d’affaires of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Kingdom of Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Natalia Anoshyna, artists, art-lovers, and curious tourists alike mingled in the splendid surroundings of the great hall.
Artists exhibiting include such names as Tatyana Binovska (My Pain, pictured left), and Edouard Belsky.
Many of the works exhibited are available for purchase.
Central to the exhibition is a tragic illustration of the reality of life in Ukraine during Vladimir Putin’s genocidal onslaught: personal items – including children’s toys, blackened and twisted – taken from the very rubble of buildings and schools destroyed by Russian missiles and artillery shells, were on display.
According to the latest figures available from 24th February to 4th September 2022, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recorded 13,917 civilian casualties in Ukraine: 5,718 killed and 8,199 injured.
This installation brings the viewer to within touching distance of the personal possessions of men, women, and children, whose names are contained within those numbers.
More than one onlooker was moved to tears by the sight.
In front of this tragic installation, young pupils of Svitlana Legiba presented their teacher with flowers, thus proving that the Russian aggressors can never succeed in destroying Ukraine’s rich and vibrant artistic cultural future.
Entrance to the exhibition is free, and it is open from 10am – 6pm every day.
Garemijnzaal, Markt 7, Bruges.
Cultural Centre of Ukraine in Belgium: https://www.facebook.com/CCUkr…
Follow EU Today on Social media:
