"FROM L-ART, WITH LOVE" Gallery "L-Art" Andriyvsky Uzviz Kyiv, Ukraine

back          "FROM L-ART, WITH LOVE" "The Ukrainian" Magazine No. 4, 1999 Dear Mary: How are the children? How is John? How is your beloved basset Crazy? I am fine. And you know what? I think I am falling in love with this country, this wild Ukraine. I am glad Freddie was sent here after all, and not to Upper Volta. And yes, you can congratulate me, Mary. I have added another hobby to my assortment. I have started collecting pictures. It all began like this. After we came and our new acquaintances found out about my collecting Nazca things, African masks, etc., they said I should take an interest in Ukrainian embroidery and woodcarving. I mean things everybody collects. Well, you know me, Mary, I hate 'marching in step'. In fact, I married Freddie precisely because everyone I knew said I shouldn't and what kind of family life could I expect with a man weighing 150 kilos and playing the harp. But like I said, you know me... And so one rainy day I was walking in Podil (an old city district), my mood matching the weather, thinking that perhaps Upper Volta would be better; it was warm there anyway. And then, reaching Andriyivsky Uzviz (local version of the Montmarte), I spotted an art gallery. I decided to drop in, if only to get out of the rain for a while. But as I stepped inside I froze, my eyes glued to a canvas on the opposite wall. At first I couldn't make out the subject. I was struck by the array of colours. The picture emanated sunlight and warmth. I approached it. In the forefront was a woman carrying a sheaf of wheat. A Rubens type, except that she was dressed. And she looked so very much alive! Bursting with good health, with dimples on her cheeks. But her eyes were the greatest thing. They shone with such happiness! Looking at them, I realised that we all, Freddie and I, lacked such happiness, such warmth, such sunlight. Also, I realised that I must have this picture. The owner of the gallery approached quietly. Liudmyla Bereznytska, a charming woman. She must have sensed how I felt. Without waiting for my questions, she started talking about the genre, Socialist realism. An all-prevalent trend in Ukraine under the Soviets. At that time artists more often than not portrayed working men and women--factory workers, coal miners, combine operators, and so on. They turned out very happy- looking, all set to build a happy morrow. Their inspiration and purity of intentions, their unquestioning faith was clearly read in their eyes, immortalized by artists. This is Ukrainian past, part of their history. Of course, there was no trace in those canvases of the dark periods like the Holodomor Bolshevik-made famine or NKVD death camps and tortures, for no one could paint let along display such pictures. So how is one to approach works of socialist realism? As truth or falsehood? I don't know, maybe there are really half-truths... I think that all these people with callused hands simply had no idea about all those dark pages in their history. Spellbound by a notion of a shining communist future, they were oblivious to the negative aspects of life. It was their tragedy and happiness at the same time. During that period artists received good professional training lasting 12-14 years. The state was their main patron and customer. Soviet artists formed an elite; they were generally respected and two-three pictures commissioned a year would suffice for more than a satisfactory standard. And the time between such commissions would be spent polishing one's skill. No one paints such pictures now,' Liudmyla pointed out as we walked past rows of canvases on the walls. Of course not, I thought. How can one truthfully portray something which no longer exists? Where is all that faith, enthusiasm, inner harmony? In fact, Ukrainians did not recognise such works of art at first. To them, this genre was a symbol of an epoch that was anything but the best in their history. They even called it a pack of lies. But times change and now their attitude is precisely the opposite. Mary I couldn't take my eyes off that woman with a sheaf of wheat! I asked how much the picture was and you won't believe it, back home I would have to pay ten times what the gallery owner charged me. In a word, the Queen of the Field is in my place now. Freddie at first was angry about my purchase, but then changed his mind. And the picture seems to have made our apartment brighter. I got all the required papers, so I will be free to take it home with me. But you know me, Mary. I think I will have to find a pair for my 'winner of socialist elite award.' I know that Liudmyla now has an absolutely terrific coal miner. Come and visit us, you will like it! Until then be good and take care. Yours Catherine. "LAND MEASURERS" 1968 V. Syrotenko L-Art Gallery Collection "The Son's Portrait" 1942 M. Gluschenko L-Art Gallery Collection "First Home On The Virgin Soil" 1956 A. Lysenko L-Art Gallery Collection "Winner Of Socialist Elite Award" 1950's V. Malyshevsky L-Art Gallery Collection "Exchange Of Experience" 1953 S. Yusov L-Art Gallery Collection "L-Art Gallery received the highest 1999 ratings from gallery owners, art critics, painters, and patrons." Gallery "L-Art" Kyiv, 2a Andriyvsky Uzviz, Tel./Fax: 380 44 416 0320 "From L-Art, With Love" "The Ukrainian... More Than A Magazine" No. 4, 1999, Pages 62-64 Terry Pickard, Managing Editor Pickard & Co. Ltd. (Jersey) Kyiv, Ukraine  back