Klementyna looks left, Hanna looks right. Neither soldier looks the viewer in the eye, and yet straight through you.
The Ukrainian patriots’ eponymous photographs were two of the 29 captivating visual artworks for purchase at VATAHA’s first charity art auction. Hosted in the Nieuwe Kerk, The Hague on 23 March, the Evening of Hope Concert welcomed around 200 guests to a silent and an open auction, with an interlude of Ukrainian music, dance, and percussion.
Beyond charcoal sketches, photo prints, furniture, textiles and sculptures, participants could also bid for custom murals, painting workshops, and even a private book reading. “We wanted to truly make this event about all the arts possible and thereby all of Ukrainian talent,” says co-founder Oksana Savchuk.
To stimulate all the senses, the event catering also served a variety of traditional Ukrainian foods that captured the essence of Ukraine’s culinary diversity. “Ukrainian food is much more than sustenance; it is a celebration of heritage, a way to bring people together, and a symbol of the country’s resilience and creativity,” says event co-organizer Diana Makienko.
VATAHA co-founder Uliana Bun added that this kind of high-end event is crucial in solidifying the idea that Ukrainian culture us part of European culture. “It’s worse if our culture is paid attention to because of the war and not because it’s beautiful in its own right.”
Let the show begin
The guests took their seats, lights were dimmed, the chatter dissipated. It’s showtime. Oksana, Uliana and Diana were joined on stage with Annet Weijermars from the Rotary ICC Netherlands – Ukraine, who were instrumental in securing the lead musical acts of the night.
“I don’t think this will be the last [such an] evening; there will be many more events where Dutch and Ukrainian culture can mix and cross bridges,” Annet said at the event.
All five of the all-Ukrainian acts showcased Ukraine’s deep-rooted artistic heritage. Director of the Dutch Ukrainian Dance Centre Rinus Sprong opened the concert with VATAHA’s own creed:
“We arm ourselves not with weapons but with words. We take to the streets, the stage and the screen to advocate for Ukrainian freedom and justice against russian oppression. Our artivism (activism through art) solidifies our Ukrainian roots to celebrate our heritage, our history and our future.”
Artists as “social ambassadors”
The thunderous percussion of Konstantyn Napolov’s single drum set the tone for the concert – commanding yet calming.
Renowned pianist Anna Federova revitalized classical compositions together with her Lendvay Ensemble quartet, while the audience clapped in tune to opera soprano Iryna Krasnenko’s whimsical melodies.
The mood became somber again with a stunning contemporary dance performance by a trio from the United Ukrainian Ballet.
Finally, Jeyana Morozenko and Thomas Debellemaniere performed three traditional folk songs lamenting homesickness, loss and naivety lost to russian aggression.
“To understand the West’s blind spot to russia’s normalization of evil, it is essential to continue listening to the testimonies of Ukrainians. Artists, writers, thinkers, and musicians are involved in these efforts, becoming social ambassadors for their country,” says co-organizer and curator Christian van der Kooy.
Always putting Ukrainian talent first
As expected with any first-time event planning, time management proved to be a particular challenge. VATAHA had only rented the church hall until 23:00. But by the time the penultimate performance began, the open auction should have been coming to a close in order to finish on time.
Oksana and Uliana were forced to choose which time slot to cut short: the performers’ or the auction’s? “We made the split decision to end the auction early instead of not having the last performers take to the stage,” says Uliana.
“The auction could still continue outside of the event in a different form, but the beauty of the musical acts only existed in that moment. It wasn’t something we could recreate again.”
Fundraising Ukraine’s future
By the end of the night, just over a third of the 30,000 EUR goal was raised. “We learned that organizing a high-end event is quite demanding, especially when all the organizers are unpaid volunteers,” says Uliana.
But the Evening of Hope was still a phenomenal success as the fundraising directly translated into humanitarian aid on the Ukrainian front. All donations directly supported a Dutch nonprofit called Stichting Zeilen Van Vrijheid (translating to “Foundation Sails of Freedom”).
The organization regularly purchases used ambulances in the EU, equips them with medical devices, and drives the vehicles to Ukraine to help save the lives of soldiers and civilians. “Ambulances are essential in the emergency chain,” says Oksana. “When you attack them, you not only kill the medical staff but also their patients.”
The artwork speaks for herself
From their tattoos to their piercings and eye makeup, Klementyna’s and Hanna’s individuality shines through their photo portraits to the beholder. Regardless, their dedication to Ukraine’s victory reveals itself as identical.
In Klementyna’s own words, as attributed in her portrait description: “Nobody is born to go to war but now everybody has to fight, regardless of generation, religion, gender and cultural background.”
Both Klementyna’s and Hanna’s portraits were sold at the event for a generous total sum of 1,750 EUR. Klementyna decorates the walls of a new home within a private collection, while Hanna was donated to the Ukrainian House in Rotterdam.
Check out our after-video on YouTube here!
If you would like to financially support VATAHA to organize more events like the Evening of Hope, you can make a tax-dedicated donation to our foundation!
Appendix: Words of appreciation
This event was supported by numerous organizations and individuals, starting with the Nieuwe Kerk The Hague, Rotary ICC Netherlands – Ukraine, Fred Weerdenburg, Einstein Design, Pink Steenvoorden, and Le Bouchon.
Our special thanks go to all the concert performers: Anna Federova, Jozsef Lendvay, Sergei Starzhinsky, Julia Dinerstein, Katja Dirven-Didychenko, John van Lierop, Konstantyn Napolov, Iryna Krasnenko, Henadii Bezjazychnyi, Dima Borodai, Oleksii Hohidze, Viktor Litvinenko, Jeyana Morozenko and Thomas Debellemaniere.
We’re very grateful for the support of Cut The Crab TV Productions, Concordia Catering, Amaryllis Foundation, Jamal Statsenko, and Diaspora NL, as well as our auction curators Christian van der Kooy and Nothing Basic, and our auctioneer Philomeen van ‘t Hooft.
You can see a full list of the Ukrainian creatives whose works were donated to the auction here.
And of course, we extend our deep thanks to our volunteers who made this event possible:
- Anastasiia Prokofieva (Illustration)
- Maria Petrochko (Graphic design)
- Svitlana Kuznetsova (Social media)
- Nadiia Davidenko (Volunteer coordination)
- Lera Manzovitova (Photography)
And our organizational volunteers: Andriy Bun, Ksenia Chernova, Kasper Gunters, Anna Kakhiani, Vitaliy Kostetskyi, Rostyslav Kudlak, Sofiia Makienko, Sofiia Mandi, Milou van Ossenbruggen, Olga Podgayna, Anni Schleicher, Anastasia Semeko, Sofia Uleman, Antonio Vespa, Sofia Vespa, and Lonneke Zwolsman.
Thank you very much!
