Last month our team had a chance to visit the KUMF Gallery in Toronto, a home to the Ukrainian Canadian Art Foundation. Through exhibitions and organized workshops, it inspires the revival and preservation of national memory and serves as the cornerstone of Toronto’s and Canada’s vibrant Ukrainian-Canadian visual arts community.

One of the people who has a close connection with the UCAF and KUMF Gallery is Ivan Lazirko, a Ukrainian artist currently living and working in Canada. The central theme of his work is the Ukrainian woman. By focusing on the elements of national costumes and introducing easily recognizable iconic images (a viburnum branch, an ear of corn, a little white house), the artist makes it clear that this female image is a symbol of Ukraine.

Mr. Lazirko kindly allowed our filming crew to visit his artistic headquarters and see his sketches for a portrait of the prima ballerina of the Ukrainian National Opera and Ballet Theater, which was on tour in Toronto these days.