We need food

    Early that year I was invited to take part in an annual event organized by the International Public Art Festival (IPAF) in Cape Town. The festival`s aim is to create public awareness on global issues. Over the years there were a sequence of themes dedicated to sustainable life. That particular year the theme was “We need food”.

At the time I was exploring Ukrainian culture and was fascinated by the beauty of a Ukrainian folk art painting technique called Petrykivka. This is what I thought I need to present to the festival as a Ukrainian Artist. I had an insightful idea of creating a mural in this beautiful floral Ukrainian folk style. Combining this with my previous Tree of Life Mosaic theme, I visualized a tall mural named “A Tree of Life” which since ancient times in Ukraine was an extraordinarily strong symbol of sustainability.

I sent my portfolio to the decision-making panel, including a sketch of my mural which required a vertical wall for its realization. The panel was highly appreciating of my proposal but could not provide an appropriate height of wall. The irony was that I was appointed the opposite – a long horizontal wall – a white concrete fence around the house.

This was a challenging yet immensely powerful experience of re-designing the sketch according to the requirements. I created a more practical and earthy design. I made a sketch of a vegetable garden in Ukrainian folk art style showing the world our deep rooted Ukrainian tradition of growing our own food on the land.  It was a widely broadcasted Public Art project to participate in, sharing my Ukrainian culture and to convey my personal thoughts about a healthy environment.

As for ‘A Tree of Life’ mural idea – I have a strong feeling that it is going to manifest itself in the most unpredictable way elsewhere on the appropriate size wall along with making a great contribution to that place.