Mairead Owens, City Librarian, Dublin City Council, Lord Mayor of Dublin Caroline Conroy and Ukrainian Ambassador to Ireland Gerasko Larysa
Photo by Conor McCabe
Unique exhibition by Ukrainian children spreads hope and love
AN INTERNATIONAL touring exhibition of artworks created by children in war-torn Ukraine was hosted in Ballyfermot Library as its stop off in Dublin.
Ballyfermot Youth Service, through their contacts on the Erasmus+ programme, were made aware of the Ukraine Peace Relay Children’s Art Exhibition and wanted to bring it to Dublin.
With the support of Dublin City Council, the unique exhibition was brought to Ballyfermot through the Ukrainian fund for the Ballyfermot Cherry Orchard area.
The theme of the exhibition is Peace Relay, which was the idea of Lviv Children’s Gallery to give children the chance to express their artistic talent while reminding the world that children are at the front of the war.
Friends of Ukrainian children in different countries of the world quickly picked up this relay and it has been shown in over 20 countries.
The exhibition was launched on Tuesday night to a massive crowd.
“I know that we have a number of families and children from Ukraine staying in the area and this exhibition is a way for us to show our concern for them and to express our hope that the war will come to a just end,” Gerry McCarthy, manager of Ballyfermot Youth Service said at the launch.
“It is also a chance for us to show our true humanity by welcoming them into our community, cities and towns.”
Some of the pieces of work, which were all made by children in Ukraine, captured their imagination through the depiction of guardian angels and a dream city, spreading hope and love.
Dreaming of a world without war, all of the paintings were created by young people, some as young as eight-years-old, living in the Ukrainian cities of Lviv, Kiev, Mariupol, Kherson and Kharkiv.
A first for Ireland, the Peace Relay was launched by Lord Mayor of Dublin, Caroline Conroy and Ukranian Ambassador to ireland, Gerasko Larysa.
Having been in Malaysia last week, the Ukraine Peace Relay Children’s Art Exhibition will run at Ballyfermot Library until March 31, 2023.
After that, countries such as Poland, Hungary, USA, Canada, Lithuania and more will host the Peace Relay.
