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The Life And Death Of Alla Horska |  |
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Young
Ukrainian Artist of the 1950's-1960's
Chapter III, Outlawed
"One evening I attended an auction with my sister. Ada has spent almost her entire life in a Russian-speaking milieu and considered herself a Russian, but she had heard from me about the cultural movement in Kyiv and had visited Ivan Honchar's museum. Sculptures of Shevchenko and Franko, poems by Lina Kostenko, a painting by Lyudmyla Semykina, and ceramic and wooden amulets were being auctioned off that evening, and many young people were present. My sister studied them and repeatedly whispered to me that she had never seen such people. Indeed there was warmth and love and no posting or violent expression of emotion. We drank a bit and, as always in Ukraine, sang songs." ''Ada could not take her eyes off Alla Horska, an original painter in the monumental style. Alla conbined masculine strength with spirituality, artistic taste, and irony. She joked ceaselessly and soon overcame my sister's shyness. I remembered Alla's jesting reply when I had once asked her about her views: "I am a sexual democrat." I have never encountered such concentrated vital force in a woman. Friends told me how when Alla saw that someone lacked money for food after being fired, she rounded up a car and brought potatoes from a farm, all the while poking fun at the hungry person." "When the auction began, I set myself the goal of securing the poems of Lina Kostenko, whom I considered to be the best poet in Ukraine. Ada hoped to get the painting by Lyudmyla Semykina. The bidding for it was heated, and finally only Alla and I were left. Ada begged me to raise my bide, but I was unemployed and could not keep up. Just as Ada was giving me a sad look, Alla approached us and made her a gift of the painting. She did this with so much tact and humor that my sister could not refuse."
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