Rubble. Artillery fire. Drone strikes.
These are the images often associated with Ukraine after over three years of full-scale war.
However, two artists are showing North Texans there’s much more to Ukraine than violence. This week, contemporary artist Hanna Chekodanova and journalist Zarina Zabrisky are using art to reflect on the complicated balance of beauty and tragedy amid the war in Ukraine through an art exhibition and documentary screening.
Friday is the last day North Texans can see Chekodanova’s exhibition of petrykivka paintings in the lobby of Dallas City Hall. Originating around the 18th century in the Ukrainian town of Petrykivka, the folk art tradition is a style of decorative painting that is included in UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage.
“I would like for people to know that Ukraine is not only a country where there is a war happening,” Chekodanova said through a translator. “I would like people to know that this is an ancient, beautiful culture, with beautiful traditions and beautiful creativity.”
Two years ago, Chekodanova moved to Dallas as a refugee from Ukraine, where over 13,500 civilians have been killed and over 34,000 civilians injured since the full-scale Russian invasion, according to the United Nations.
Beth Huddleston, chief of protocol and international relations with Mayor Eric Johnson’s office, said the exhibition highlights Dallas’ support of the Ukrainian people. Currently, the city of Dallas has a friendship agreement with Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine.
“We feel like our commitment is to support Ukraine and its quest for freedom,” Huddleston said.
After moving to Addison, Chekodanova has continued petrykivka painting as a way to hold on to her Ukrainian heritage.
She’s one of the few artists who has mastered the use of a cat-hair brush to paint delicate, feathery lines. Chekodanova was first introduced to the art form at just 10 years old.
Now, she’s been making petrykivka art for over 25 years.
She also hosts local workshops and online classes, and has presented her work in North Texas galleries.
“I really want this tradition and this cultural aspect of our country to continue on. I have great hope that this will happen, especially since UNESCO has recognized this not only as a cultural heritage of Ukraine, but the global culture of humanity overall,” she said.
Petrykivka is a way for Chekodanova to process the war at home. She said her painting Sound of Silence is about the silence every Ukrainian is currently yearning for.
“For every Ukrainian person right now, silence is a much-needed aspect of their lives, considering all the explosions that are happening,” she said.
The colors share her message with the canvas of blooming blue flowers representing calm and the brown petals and stems reflecting the roots and soil of the land.
Then there’s her piece Faith, which features a mother and child gazing at each other, shrouded by a border of flowers.
“Having faith is exactly what this is. When you don't have a home, it's very hard to plan your life moving forward,” she said. “The birth of new life is a reflection of faith in the future, faith moving forward.”
She’ll carry that faith as she returns to Ukraine with her husband and 10-month-old son because of the uncertainty surrounding Uniting for Ukraine, the federal refugee program she came to the U.S. through.
“I'm leaving because of the change of attitude of the federal government of the United States toward immigrants,” she said. “I just can't extend my status here; it's not legal to stay in this state.”
She hopes to find a safer city to live in than her home city of Kyiv, which has consistently faced Russian strikes that have killed civilians, including children. But wherever she goes, she’s determined to keep painting.
A documentary about ‘resilience, resistance and the beauty of the human spirit’
On Sunday, the documentary Kherson: Human Safari will be screened at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library, the first public screening of the film in the U.S.
American journalist Zarina Zabrisky, who directed and produced the documentary, has been based in Kherson since 2023 and has been covering the Russian invasion into Ukraine since 2014. She was born in the Soviet Union and descends from Ukrainian Jews.
The film’s name “human safari” comes from a term coined by locals to describe the way Russian invaders are using drone strikes to target civilians, which the United Nations has identified as war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“These 60,000 [civilians] are still there and the Russian military are now attempting to cut them off while hourly bombarding, shelling and carrying out their human safari on these people,” she said.
Hadi Jawad, co-founder of Human Rights Dallas, said the documentary screening is an effort to push for a world rooted in principle not power.
“We aim to humanize the cost of war, to challenge indifference, and to remind folks that human rights are not a matter of geography or nationality,” he said.
One aspect of the documentary that might surprise audiences is the contrasting side of Kherson that the film explores through its rich, artistic culture. A throughline of the film features a local dancer living through the invasion.
Zabrisky said it’s symbolic in the way “the dancer is dancing through everything that befalls her.”
Kherson, a seaport along the southern coast, became the first major Ukrainian city to fall to Russians early in the war though it is now liberated. Fighting over the region continues as Russia tries to regain control.
Since filming ended in June, Zabrinsky said the situation in Zherson has deteriorated, which is why she’s committed to returning to the region as soon as possible. She hopes the documentary will raise awareness about the civilians who continue to face targeted drone strikes.
“The message is there's a narrow, narrow window to save these lives and to save the city. Whatever can be done by writing to politicians, by having rallies, by sharing it with families and friends that this is what's happening now,” she said.
The documentary is expected to screen in New York, Washington D.C. and Paris. Viewers can also watch the full documentary for free online.
Details: Screening and Q&A in Dallas on Aug. 10 at 1 p.m. at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library
Arts Access is an arts journalism collaboration powered by The Dallas Morning News and KERA.
This community-funded journalism initiative is funded by the Better Together Fund, Carol & Don Glendenning, City of Dallas OAC, The University of Texas at Dallas, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Eugene McDermott Foundation, James & Gayle Halperin Foundation, Jennifer & Peter Altabef and The Meadows Foundation. The News and KERA retain full editorial control of Arts Access’ journalism.
