Ambassador of Ukraine Olesya Ilashchuk and Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Plovdiv Dimitar Georgiev opened an exhibition with icons of Kyiv artists Oleksandr Klimenko and Sonia Atlantova on the occasion of the 32nd anniversary of Ukraine’s independence.

The exhibition, which is supported by the Ukrainian Embassy in Bulgaria, is the work of Kyiv-based artistic couple Oleksandr Klymenko and Sonya Atlantova, who began painting icons on ammunition covers in 2014 when the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.

The ambassador of Ukraine stated: “This unique exhibition hides a lot of history, of war and peace, human suffering and hope. The icons inscribed on the covers of ammunition are brought from the land of hostilities, they are silent but eloquent witnesses of the unprovoked war and the pain that Ukraine feels every day. These icons are a request and a dream for peace in Ukraine and for peace in Europe.”

“The icons are in the special collections of our partner countries,” stressed H.P. Olesya Ilashchuk.

Among those present were Zdravko Dimitrov, mayor of Plovdiv, the regional governor of Plovdiv Iliya Zyumbilev, as well as deputies, intellectuals and public figures.

At the opening in the “Dimitar Georgiev” museum gallery, special certificates were presented by the Embassy of Ukraine to the most prominent donors who have supported over the years the initiatives for reception and social adaptation of Ukrainian refugees in Plovdiv.

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