Kyrylo Beskorovayny came to Cambridge from Ukraine as a high school student in 2010. In the small Wisconsin town, he established friendships with Katherine Simdon and Augie McGinnity-Wake, which continued long after he returned to his native country.
When Russia invaded Ukraine earlier this year, Beskorovainyi reached out to his friends from the United States for help.
In response, Simdon, now the owner of Overt Space Gallery + Gift in Stoughton, and McGinnity-Wake, planned an art exhibition of local and Ukrainian artists as a way to raise money for military and humanitarian aid to the country. The proceeds will be split between the artists (45%), Ukrainian needs (45%) and the gallery (10%).
On Friday, Overt Space will host a reception for the “We Stand With Ukraine” exhibit. The gallery, located at 130 E. Main St. in Stoughton, will be open from 6 to 8 p.m. The exhibition will be on display through Sept. 24.
Participating local artists include Simdon, Jill Stevens, John Palahs, Kathleen D’Angelo, Ray Zovar, Xizhou Xie, Tamara Tsurkan and Nastia Craig.
The Ukrainian artists in the showcase include Sergiy Maidukov, Zhenia Olinuk, Art Studio Agrafka and Marysya Rudska.
Beskorovayny said he is very thankful for the support from the U.S. government and its citizens. He receives photos of Ukrainian flags on cars and houses, and sees people participating in other fundraising activities.
“Our country is fighting for our own freedom and independence but in a way we are also fighting for the whole world,” he said. “Because Ukrainian victory will show that such barbaric occupations cannot happen in the 21st century, dictatorship cannot win over democracy.”
Planning the art show
When Simdon started planning the event, she was adamant about the artists getting paid for their hard work and talent.
“As an artist myself, I so often get asked to donate artwork as if there’s not enough value on it to get paid and donate money,” Simdon said. “As a society, we undervalue the effect of art. We need to change that, starting with hiring local artists and paying them.”
McGinnity-Wake said the cost of the artwork ranges from $30 to $4,000.
“There is a whole range of prices,” McGinnity-Wake said. “Ukrainian art will be prints, so you can get different sized prints very affordable.
“A lot of local art will be original pieces, that will be a little more expensive, but you can own an original piece of art. I think it’s pretty neat.”
Art helped during stressful times
Nastia Craig, one of the local artists in the exhibition, moved to the U.S. from Ukraine in 1998 and has lived in New York state, Long Island and Madison. The majority of her family still resides in Ukraine. Her initial reaction to the war was pure shock.
“I was just kind of watching,” Craig said. “Just watching the events unfold that day. I remember just holding my breath in anticipation that something horrible was going to happen. They were showing cities with thousands and thousands of units of tanks and heavy equipment.
“I thought they were just going to swallow the whole country, to be honest.”
Craig will display six pieces of artwork in the show, which were all created during the time the war was unfolding. She named the pieces based on her thoughts, feelings and reflections of what was happening.
“Mariupol’s Last Flower” is one of her pieces for sale. It commemorates the city of Mariupol, located by the seashore, that Russia invaders largely destroyed.
Craig has used her artwork to help her through the emotions of watching the current destruction in Ukraine. She hopes her work will help the Ukrainian people and its army defend their country.
“When the war started, I felt helpless, like I was just observing it,” Craig said. “But now I know that the work that I did to keep myself sane during that time can help the Ukrainian army, which is very important to me.”
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