An Opening Weekend fit for a Hetman

New York (May 1, 2010) – The Museum unveiled the splendors of Ukraine-Sweden: At the Crossroads of History (XVII-XVIII Centuries) on April 23 and 24, and opened the exhibition to the public on April 25. Several hundred visitors from Europe and throughout North America attended the "Opening Weekend" festivities and viewed the exhibition with great enthusiasm.

The Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism of Ukraine, Tymofiy Kokhan, represented the Ukrainian diplomatic corps at the opening ceremonies; in a thank-you letter written upon his return to Ukraine, he stated:

The exhibition Ukraine-Sweden: At the Crossroads of History (XVII-XVIII Centuries), without exaggeration, will become the most important Ukrainian international museum project of the past 20 years, since Ukraine's independence.

Photo by Volodymyr Taran View of the exhibition Ukraine-Sweden

Attending the opening festivities was a delegation of more than 30 directors and other officials from museums, archives, and historical preserves in Ukraine, headed by Serhii Chaikowskyi, General Director of the National Museum of History of Ukraine, which originated the exhibition in 2008-2009 in Kyiv and coordinated the loans to our museum from the Ukrainian institutions, and Professor Iryna Matiash, First Deputy Director General of the State Committee of Archives of Ukraine. The delegation from Swedish museums, which was to have been headed by Johan Engström, Deputy Director of the National Museums of Military History, was unable to attend because of the volcanic eruption in Iceland.

Photos by Jurij Leshko Top (l – r): Tymofiy Kokhan, Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism of Ukraine; Dr. Oleh Shamshur, Ambassador of Ukraine to the U.S.; Serhii Chaikowskyi, General Director of the National Museum of History of Ukraine; Dr. Yurii Savchuk of the Institute of History of Ukraine at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine; Bottom (l – r): Prof. Jaroslaw Leshko, President, Board of Trustees of The Ukrainian Museum; Marianna Zajac, President of the UNWLA; Lubomyr Zielyk, Chairman, Self Reliance (NY) Federal Credit Union; Maria Shust, Director, The Ukrainian Museum.

The dignitaries and diplomats who honored the event with their presence included the Ambassador of Ukraine to the U.S., Dr. Oleh Shamshur; Ambassador Anders Lidén and Ambassador Yuriy Sergeyev, Permanent Representatives of Sweden and Ukraine, respectively, to the United Nations; the Honorary Consul General of Sweden, David Dangoor; the Consul General of Ukraine in New York, Serhiy Pohoreltsev; members of the clergy, headed by Bishop Paul Chomnycky of the Ukrainian Catholic Church and Rev. Todor Mazur, representing Archbishop Antony of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church; Lubomyr Zielyk, Chairman, and Bohdan Kurczak, President, Self Reliance (NY) Federal Credit Union, the exhibition's major sponsor; Marianna Zajac, President of the UNWLA; and representatives of many Ukrainian organizations and institutions. Also present were former Ukrainian Museum presidents Titus Hewryk, John Luchechko, and Olha Hnateyko.

Photo by Jurij Leshko Gallery talk with the exhibition curator, Dr. Yurii Savchuk

The weekend festivities included:

All in all … an Opening Weekend fit for a Hetman!

Click to view the slideshow (73 images):

About the Museum
The Ukrainian Museum was founded in 1976 by the Ukrainian National Women's League of America as a showcase for Ukrainian culture. Over the past 32 years, the Museum has amassed extensive collections of folk art, fine art, and archival material. It mounts several exhibitions annually; publishes accompanying bilingual catalogues; organizes courses, workshops, and other educational programs; and hosts a variety of public events. In April 2005 the Museum moved into a new, state-of-the-art facility in New York's East Village, funded entirely by the Ukrainian American community.