Since the 24th of February, our world turned upside down – Russia brutally invaded my motherland! My work has begun to reflect this violent change: the faces are no longer serene but anguished, the figures full of holes, as if broken by shelling.

I am trying to make sense of this war by seeing it from different points of view, revisiting Russia’s long and bloody history. I had to memorize over 1000 years of endless cruelty and predatory wars in my soviet-era grade school, which I then promptly forgot–now I review the atrocities in this new context. I am glued to the news and speak to my cousin in Kiev everyday. There is a little progress, if you could call it a progress, made towards the end of this war. But how many more lives will have to be sacrificed before it is over? We are a global community–I hope the world-leading countries will step up to stop the Russian army terror.

I thought we had been entering the age of Aquarius, the era of a new creative Renaissance. But it seems we still have more of these excruciating experiences to go through before entering the age of peace and creativity. As an eternal optimist I believe deeply in the goodness of people everywhere. We are the Earth’s consciousness and it is up to us to steer the future in the proper direction!

Broken Dreams
work in progress

Our fundraiser reached the $10,000 mark mid-March.  The gallery artists are donating all proceeds from this exhibit to World Central Kitchen wck.org and I am donating my sculpture “Uncertain Moment” from the Shell Dweller series. This creature finds sanctuary in the safe home of a shell. Awaiting for rescue from her brothers, she contemplates when it will be safe to crawl out. Let’s be hopeful that after this war, peace will prevail!

The seacoastartist.org gallery is open Wed-Sat 10am to 5pm, Sun 1pm to 4pm.

I am so honored Certain About Uncertainty was awarded First Prize by the Bernie Pucker and Rose Montera of the Pucker Gallery. This is the second annual online Equinox exhibition of the New England Sculptors Association. The judges explained that this sculpture perfectly represented what they were looking for in the winner of this show–harmony, balance and peace. You can vote on the people’s choice favorite and watch the winning artists talk about their works here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksmfkBpydcw
Certain About Uncertainty
stoneware, stains, glazes, glass

Portraits in Clay: Marking Our Time exhibition opened at Abrams Claghorn Gallery in Albany, CA in conjunction with National Conference of Clay event. My Forest Diaries installation consists out of 9 pieces. It was shown there along with Sandy Frank, Lorraine Bonner, Stephanie Thames and Pamela Thomas.

Spellbound Under Northern Skies
stoneware, stains, glazes

I conducted a workshop fundraiser where we sculpted sunflowers to help my native country. All the proceeds went to Operation Sunflower Fund which provides critical medical and non-lethal protective equipment and supplies directly to people in Ukraine that need them most. This fundraiser is organized by my friends in San Francisco.

My students keep bringing me sunflowers. Symbols of Ukraine, they represent longevity, peace, optimism, honesty and happiness. I hope this horrific invasion from Russia will be over soon and my motherland will be free and peaceful again!