How has a small peasant woman with rudimentary art supplies and childlike paintings of fantastical beasts forced the world to acknowledge the absurdity of war? Ukrainian folk artist MARIA PRYMACHENKO  (1908-1997) —dubbed the People’s Artist of Ukraine—produced hundreds of small, colorful gouache paintings of imaginary creatures, flowers and village scenes filled with traditional Ukrainian decorative patterns that captured the heart and soul of a nation. In this ARTish Words episode, we discuss why the recent Russian bombing of a small art museum that housed some of Maria’s works has unified resistance, why art matters in this moment, and what efforts are being made to protect artworks like Maria’s.

Find  Maria:

• UATV Virtual Museum Tour of Maria Prymachenko work and life / UATV is the Ukrainian state foreign language broadcaster providing international audiences with news from Ukraine (watch three-part series) 
• Prymachenko Family Foundation (follow) 
• Rug Your Life + Prymachenko Family Foundation Collaboration (support) 
• PPARTEM + Prymachenko Family Foundation Hoodie Collaboration (support) 
• Center for Art Law, (learn) 

Learn More About Maria and Current Ukrainian Crisis:

• Ukrainian Artist Maria Prymachenko’s Fantastical Visions Have Captivated the World—Here Are 3 Key Insights Into Her Life and Work, Artnet News  (read) 
•  Artworks of Ukrainian Folk Artist Maria Prymachenko Reportedly Burned During Russian Invasion, by  Madeleine Muzdakis on My Modern Met, March 3, 2022 (read) https://mymodernmet.com/ukrainian-folk-maria-prymachenko/ 
•  Flowers for Peace: The Spirited Art of Ukrainian Artist Maria Prymachenko That is Now Becoming a Symbol of Hope, by Shira Wolfe on Artland (read) 
• How Ukrainians are desperately fighting to protect their cultural heritage amid an invasion, by Rupendra Brahambhatt on DME Science  (read) 
• ‘All art must go underground:’ Ukraine scrambles to shield its cultural heritage, Washington Post, by Max Bearak and Isabelle Khurshudyan , March 14, 2022  (read) 
• Under threat of Russian bombs, Lviv hides away its priceless heritage, by Joel Hunter on BBC News  (read) 

Support Efforts / How You Can Help:

• Overview of General Ukrainian Relief Efforts, compiled by NPR (learn) 
• Links for Emergency Efforts to Support Ukrainian Artists, including emergency housing, studio space, art relocation (learn) 
• SUCHO (Saving Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Online) /  cultural heritage professionals – librarians, archivists, researchers, programmers – working to

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